LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. 



JDS 9 

^tX,:.. C0 } njn0i!t i>.. 
Sb.eli\..C.4.& 



UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 



THE 



HANDS * OF * THE * ORIENT.-* 



BY THE REY, M. B. CHAPMAN. 



t 




I ... FEB 7 1888 -n J 



nashville, tenn.: 
Soutiietin Methodist Publishing House. 

' ' " 1883. ' - % 



Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1S88, 

BY M. B. CHAPMAN, 
in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at "Washington. 




TO MY WIFE, 
WHO, FROM MY EARLY MANHOOD, 
Has Been My Loving 
COUNSELOR AND EFFICIENT HELPER, 
AND 

Whose Prayers Followed Me Around the Whole Globe, 
THIS VOLUME 
IS AFFECTIONATELY INSCRIBED. 



FREBJIGE. 

N October 20, 1836, the writer left St. Joseph, Mo., to make a 
tour of the world. At San Francisco he was joined by the 
Eev. W. B. Palmore, and together they sailed October 30, in the " City 
of Peking," for Yokohama, Japan. He reached St. Joseph on his 
return August 31, 1887, having made the voyage around the globe 
in ten months and eleven days. He traveled forty thousand miles by 
land and sea, and by the good providence of God made this long jour- 
ney without an accident, without a day's sickness, without missing 
connection, and without losing an article of baggage. By starting 
at the proper time, each country was seen at the best season of the 
year, and there was no suffering from either excessive heat or cold 
in the entire trip. By following the natural order and traveling 
with the sun, much discomfort was avoided and time economized. 
So accurately was the trip planned before leaving home that the 
date of arrival at and departure from the different points was in al- 
most every instance at the time specified months beforehand, and 
the party was scarcely a day out of time at any stage of the journey. 

Much of the matter contained in this book was embraced in let- 
ters written as the Editorial Correspondent of the St. Louis Christian 
Advocate. While the letters are published, with very few exceptions, 
as they were written, much new matter is added, especially in mis- 
sionary intelligence and statistics. The journey was not a selfish 
one — undertaken merely for gratification and pleasure. The writer 
desired most earnestly to study the great missionary operations of 

(5) 




6 Preface. 

the Church, to stand on the very picket line of the great army of 
occupation which is yet to take this world for Christ; to come face 
to face with heathendom and see what are the obstacles which the 
faithful missionaries are to overcome. In this desire he was grati- 
fied, and this volume gives the result of his observations in the mis- 
sionary lands of the East. He sends it forth with the earnest prayer 
that it may quicken the great heart of the Church, and cause the 
picket line to be strengthened and an advance to be made at ail 
points. May the day speedily dawn when the Church shall no long- 
er merely "play at missions," but when the wail of the millions 
from the darkened Lands of the Orient shall come to the Christian 
people of America, inspiring them to enlarged plans for the regener- 
ation of Asia, Africa, and all the isles of the sea ! 



Introductory. Page 

Crossing the Pacific 11 

I. Japan, the Land of the Sunrise. 

I. First Days in Japan 25 

II. Japan and the Japanese 34 

III. The Mikado's Capital, and Nikko the Beautiful, 49 

IV. Historic Cities and Peaces in Japan 66 

V. The Inland Sea — Schools and Education 81 

VI. Mission-work 89 

II. China, The Middle Kingdom. 

I. In the Celestial Empire 105 

II. Chinese Civilization 119 

III. Suchow 127 

IV. Hong Kong and Canton 139 

V. Chinese Customs 150 

VI. The Eeligions of China 165 

VII. Missions 174 

III. The Islands of the Tropics. 

I. Singapore and Penang 189 

II. Ceylon, the Land of Cinnamon and Spices ... 200 

IV. India, the Land of the Vedas. 

I. The Great Temple Cities of Southern India 219 

II. Tanjore to Calcutta 234 

III. Calcutta, the City of Palaces 245 

IV. Among the Himalayas 257 

V. Benares, the Sacred City of the Hindoos 267 

VI. The Sepoy Eebellion — Lucknow and Cawnpore. . 276 

VII. Agra and the Taj Mahal 285 

VIII. Delhi and the Punjab 295 

IX. Two Strange Cities 305 

X. Life in India and the Orient 316 

XI. Missionary Operations 325 



(7) 



Contents, 



V. Egypt, "The Homestead of Nations." 

L Sakkaea and the Pyramids 333 

II. A Week in Cairo and Its Vicinity 343 

III. The Religions op Egypt — Alexandria 353 

VI. Palestine, the Holy Land. 

I. Joppa to Jeru>al:.^m 365 

II. The City of David 374 

III. Walks about Jerusalem 3S3 

IV. Jericho, the Jordan, and the Dead Sea 392 

V. Bethlehem 401 

VI. From Jerusalem to Dothan 408 

VII. Znazareth and the Sea of Galilee 423 

VIII. Cesarea Philippi; Head Waters or the, Jordan. 436 

VII. The Levant. 

L Damascus. 447 

II. Baalbec and Leyroot 454 

III. The Levantine q ea 467 

IV. Ephesus 473 

V. Constantinople 4S0 

Appendix. 

Statistics of Missions and Mission-work in Japan 491 

Japanese Xotes , 492 

An Original Poem 496 

Mission-work in China 497 

Missions and Mission-work in India 498 

Statistics of Missions and Mission-work in Syria and 

Palestine 499 

General Missionary Statistics 501 



^NTR0DU6T6RY. 



CROSSING THE PACIFIC. 



ffife? ARM broke the breeze against the brow, 

Dry sung the tackle, sung the sail ; 
The lady's-head upon the prow 

Caught the shrill salt, and sheered the gale. 
The broad seas swelled to meet the keel, 

And swept behind : so quick the run, 
We felt the good ship shake and reel, 

W e seemed to sail into the sun ! 



;HB hQRB^ of tbe 0RI 

INTRODUCTORY. 



Crossing the Pacific. 

fHE world lias made wonderful progress during the past 
three hundred and fifty years, and in no respect more 
than in navigation. When Magellan, the first circumnav- 
igator of the globe, set sail from Seville, August 1, 1519, in 
his five small vessels — two of one hundred and thirty tons 
each, two of ninety, and one of sixty — he probably " build- 
ed better than he knew," for it is by no means certain that 
scientific men were persuaded at that time of the sphericity 
of the earth. But his ships sailed on and on until, with 
the rising sun, in three years they again came into the port 
of Seville ; yet their gallant commander did not live to see 
the accomplishment of his heroic purpose, having been 
killed in the second year of his voyage during a conflict 
with the natives of the Philippine Islands. Nearly half a 
century later, Sir Francis Drake started from Europe with 
a similar fleet of five ships, and also accomplished the cir- 
cuit of the globe in three years. Captain Cook was three 
years in making each of his voyages, except the last, which 
occupied four years, and in the course of which he also fell 
a victim to savages. 

Now a voyage around the world is a mere holiday ex- 
cursion, and may be made, so far as the actual time con- 

(11) 



12 



Crossi?ig ike Facijic. 



suraed in traveling is concerned, as Jules Verne has shown, 
in eighty days, or even less. 

The vessels in which these early and adventurous mar- 
iners made their perilous voyages were mere shallops com- 
pared with the magnificent ocean steamers which now plow 
the mighty deep. None of them were over two hundred 
tons burden, while all the steamers of the Pacific Mail 
Steam-ship Company are from four to five thousand tons. 
A steamer like the City of Peking, which is carrying us 
through the great Pacific, is one of the grandest triumphs 
of modern art and genius, and is so nearly a thing of life 
that the ceaseless throb of its mighty engines is like the pul- 
sations of a living heart. Our floating world is four hun- 
dred and twenty-five feet long, forty-eight feet wide, and 
thirty-five feet from inside keel to upper deck, being the 
largest ship afloat which carries the American flag. Her 
capacity is five thousand and seventy-nine tons gross, and 
her engine is two thousand horse-power, with ten boilers, 
only six of which are ordinarily in use. She carries one 
thousand two hundred tons of coal, using, however, only 
forty-five tons per day, which gives her an average speed of 
eleven knots per hour. The Atlantic steamers burn three 
hundred and fifty tons of coal daily, and average from fif- 
teen to twenty knots per hour. It would take one hundred 
tons of coal daily to run all the boilers of the City of Pe- 
king and she would then be able to make seventeen knots 
per hour. She is a steam propeller, her screw being twen- 
ty-eight feet, with steering apparatus all under the control 
of steam, so that one man may move this vast ship in what- 
ever direction he chooses by the motion of his finger. She 
also carries several thousand feet of canvas, having three 
immense fore and aft and eleven square sails, so that if any 
thing should happen to her steam apparatus, she could 
quickly be converted into a sailing-vessel, and make even 



Crossing the Pacific. 13 

then from eight to ten knots per hour. Her crew consists 
of one hundred and forty-five men, all told, embracing the 
captain, first officer, engineer, purser, surgeon, freight clerk, 
assistant freight clerk, four mates, six assistant engineers, 
three oilers, three water-tenders, four quartermasters, three 
watchmen, a carpenter, butcher, steward, second steward, 
stewardess, thirty-six firemen and coal-heavers, and thirty 
seamen on deck. The remainder consist of cooks, waiters, 
cabin-boys, etc. All the cooks, waiters, cabin-boys, and 
crew are Chinese, John Chinaman makes the best of sail- 
ors. The ship has capacity for one thousand five hundred 
steerage and one hundred and fifty cabin passengers, but on 
this trip she has only six hundred and fifty of the first and 
twenty of the last. 

A vast amount of specie is taken to China by every ship, 
the average being half a million dollars each trip, and I 
suppose that the City of Peking now has on board fully 
that amount. 

On Saturday, October 30, at 3 p.m., we sailed from San 
Francisco in this magnificent ship toward the setting sun. 
The hour for leaving was two o'clock, but we were delayed 
an hour by the lateness of the overland mail. It had been 
raining all the morning, but the sun came out just before 
we left, and it was a beautiful afternoon as we steamed 
down the bay and past the shipping toward the Golden 
Gate. San Francisco is at the northern extremity of a 
long and narrow peninsula which lies between the bay on 
the one side and the Pacific Ocean on the other, and the 
Golden Gate, the entrance to the bay and the harbor, is 
between the city and the mainland on the opposite side of 
the bay. It is only about three hundred yards wide, and 
forms an entrance to a land-locked harbor, one of the finest 
in the world. As we steamed out, we waved adieus to the 
friends in the brave little tug which had accompanied us 



14 



Grossing the Pacific. 



down the bay, and soon the shores of California and the 
beautifully crowned hills of San Francisco were rapidly re- 
ceding from our view. Passing the steep walls of Alcatraz 
on the left, soon the light-house came in view. Darkness 
fell over the ocean, the last sight of land for three weeks 
was gone, and as I leaned over the gunwale and watched 
the phosphorescent gleam of the waves as our gallant ship 
plowed through them, I could but think of the changes 
that might come before I should see friends and home and 
native land again. Then, as I caught a glimpse — the last 
— of the star-like light from Farelloness Light-house, it 
seemed an omen of good, and as such I accepted it. Amidst 
all the perils by land and sea before me, I felt assured that 
God would be with me according to his promise. And in 
that trust I went to my room and quietly slept through 
my first night on the broad Pacific. 

What a new world is that on which the sea-farer enters ! 
How novel and strange all things connected with the ocean, 
the ship, the machinery, the sky, the wild waste around 
you! And nothing strikes one more strangely than the 
overpowering sense of complete isolation. You are cut off 
from all the movements, the sounds, the companionships, 
the interests of earth, and for three weeks that moving ves- 
sel is your world. Iso message can come to you from the 
great throbbing life you have left, and you feel as if you 
are lost to the world and the world lost to you. No morn- 
ing papers, no letters or telegrams, no familiar home faces, 
no possible communication with anybody but the strangers 
on shipboard, no duties claiming your attention. You 
have cut loose from all your world and are adrift. This 
solitude at times grows oppressive. 

Alone on the wide, wide sea, 
So lonely 'twas that God himself 
Scarce seemed there to be. 



Crossing the Pacific. 



15 



But He is there — 

Eternal Father ! strong to save, 
Whose arm hath bound the restless wave, 
Who bidd/st the mighty ocean deep 
Its own appointed limits keep, 
O hear us when we cry to thee, 
For those in peril on the sea ! 

Very frequently the words of the Psalmist have recurred 
to me: "They that go down to the sea in ships, that do 
business in great waters; these see the w r orks of the Lord 
and his wonders in the deep. For he commandeth, and 
raiseth the stormy wind, w 7 hich lifteth up the waves thereof. 
They mount up to the heaven, they go down again to the 
depths; their soul is melted because of trouble. They reel 
to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their 
wit's end. Then they cry unto the Lord in their trouble, 
and he bringeth them out of their distresses. He maketh 
the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof are still. Then 
are they glad because they be quiet; so he bringeth them 
unto their desired haven. ,? 

That a three weeks' ocean voyage is monotonous goes 
without saying. On the Pacific a sail is rarely seen, as the 
ships pursue different routes according to the time of year 
and the direction they are going. At this season the head 
winds are all from the north-west along the northerly route, 
and would greatly retard the progress of a ship going in 
that direction. Consequently, when going toward Japan, 
they go far to the south, and find calmer seas and more fa- 
vorable winds. Our course was between the thirtieth and 
thirty-second parallels, which is about the latitude of New 
Orleans, and during most of the time the weather was as 
balmy as May. But the first week, there must have been 
some severe wind farther north, as we encountered a heavy 
sea which made our ship roll and plunge in a highly dis- 



16 



Crossing the Pacific. 



agreeable manner. Those of us who had not on our " sea- 
legs " — and not many of us had — found pedestrianism im- 
practicable and dangerous; but, worse than all, our stom- 
achs proved treacherous and Neptune would have his trib- 
ute. When these mighty pulsations of the ocean's life 
came, we felt like the seasick Quaker who said to the cap- 
tain, " Friend, dost thee call this the Pacific?" 

When Balboa and his men were so overjoyed at the dis- 
covery of a calm ocean that they called it the Pacific, they 
were on the coast of Panama. Had they discovered it or 
attempted its navigation further north, they would never 
have so named it. One of our party expressed the opinion 
at starting that seasickness had been exaggerated, but he 
found abundant reason to change his mind, and all finally 
agreed that language failed to do it justice. Jeremiah must 
have known something of this fearful malady when he de- 
clared that " the whole head is sick and the whole heart 
faint." Fortunately, it never kills ; but a noted divine gave 
voice to a common experience when he said, after crossing 
the ocean, that during the first four days of his voyage he 
feared he would die, and during the last four he feared he 
would not. 

After my experience, I am quite ready to credit a story 
told by Henry Ward Beecher, who was such a very poor 
sailor that it is said the sight of a steam-ship company's ad- 
vertisement was almost enough to give him inward qualms. 
Mr. Beecher said that when he came over from England in 
the good ship "Asia" in 1850, as he was lying deathly sick 
in his berth, he heard the sailors overhead singing in chorus 
as they tugged at the ropes : 

"South Ca-lina darky stole my shoe, ha-ha!" 
Five years afterward he was awakened one morning by a 
sound that seemed very familiar, and looking out of his 
window, which overlooked the water, he saw that the crew 



Crossin g the Pacific. 



17 



of a vessel just below were hoisting anchor, and they were 
singing as they worked : 

"South Ca-lina darky stole my shoe, ha-ha !" 
By some sort of subtle influence, without recalling at the 
time that he was seasick when he first heard the song, in a 
moment or two he experienced as pronounced a feeling of 
nausea as he had ever had aboard a ship. 

But seasickness, like all evils, has its compensations, and 
one is that its intensity is a Lethe's stream w r hieh drowns 
all other sorrows. It obliterates the memory of all that 
grieved and annoyed yesterday, or last week, or last year. 
The great engine throbs in your stomach, every roll of the 
ship gives you an unutterable disgust, and the sea is a mor- 
tal enemy that you soon come to hate "with perfect ha- 
tred." The sea is a good place for porpoises, sea-gulls, and 
whales— a place which few wise people ever come to like. 
That was a sensible sea-captain who said : " I have followed 
the sea thirty-five years ; but I hate it. I pitied my dog so 
much that I left him at home last winter." 

Old George Herbert, in his quaint way, advises people 
to praise the sea, but to keep on dry land. By the way, 
they name ships Persia, Etruria, Scotia, Servia, etc. Why 
did it never occur to any one to call a ship Nausea? There 
are thousands of fellow r -sufferers who will agree with me as 
to its appropriateness. 

Soon after leaving San Francisco we saw a number of 
whales, who spouted the water to quite a height, and Avould 
occasionally throw their great tails above the surface, af- 
fording us a good view of them. One night we passed 
through a large shoal of porpoises, or "sea pigs," as the 
sailors call them. We could see them very plainly in the 
moonlight, as they leaped from the water and darted along 
with the ship. They were black, and about the size and 
shape of small pigs. At the same time, on the opposite side 
2 



18 



Crossing the Pacific. 



of the ship, there was a shoal of a different kind of fish, 
which some thought were sharks. 

Sea-gulls followed us on tireless wing, always visible, 
now skimming the water, now darting into the air, gather- 
ing the fragments and offal thrown overboard from the 
ship. They remind me of some people who would rather 
obtain a precarious living by dangerous and uncertain 
means than engage in some honorable and steady employ- 
ment. It seems incredible that birds can fly five thousand 
miles, and yet the same birds followed us from San Fran- 
cisco to Yokohama, only resting occasionally on the surface 
of the water. The sailors say they never go to the land, 
and that they even lay their eggs and hatch their young on 
the broad ocean, but on this point I am incredulous. Large 
shoals of flying fish were frequently seen. These fish are 
ten or twelve inches in length and of a bluish color. Their 
wings are merely exaggerated fins, which allow them only 
to fly a short distance. Their appearance called to mind 
the story of the sailor who on his return from a voyage 
said to his mother: " I have seen mountains of gold, rivers 
of rum, and fish that could fly." "Ah, my son," said the 
old lady, " the mountains of gold and the rivers of rum may 
be true, but you should be ashamed to try to hoax your 
poor old mother with a tale of flying fish ! " 

On Monday morning, November 15, about eleven o'clock 
quite a squall blew up, filling the sea with white-caps, and 
making the ship to pitch and roll in a very uncomfortable 
manner. Suddenly the captain called out, "A water- 
spout!" and there, sure enough, about five miles to the 
south-east of us, was a long, slender, dark column of water, 
penciled against the horizon, and spreading out at the 
height of about seventy -five or one hundred feet into a 
heavy black cloud. It passed rapidly across the ocean, the 
column swaying as moved by the wind, and remaining in 



Crossing the Pacific. 



19 



plain view for about fifteen minutes. It was a beautiful 
sight, but we were very well contented to view it from a long 
distance. 

During the w T hole five thousand miles we only saw one 
sail, which proved to be a large sailing-vessel, and which 
passed a few miles to our leeward. Each of the great steam- 
ers crossing the Pacific pursues its own course, and they 
rarely, if ever, meet. 

One of the most interesting incidents of the day is the 
posting of the calendar, announcing the latitude, longitude, 
and number of miles sailed the preceding twenty-four hours. 
This is done every day at noon, and it is always immedi- 
ately consulted with eager interest by the passengers. Our 
daily average run was two hundred and seventy-six miles 
— about eleven knots an hour. To be able to make these 
calculations and to decide just at what point in the track- 
less and always moving ocean a ship may be, and to deter- 
mine the time by this, is a never-ceasing mystery to the un- 
itiated. Every day the clock was set back fifteen or twenty 
minutes, according to the number of miles run the preced- 
ing day. 

The most memorable event of the voyage w 7 as dropping 
a day out of the calendar, which occurs only on the Pa- 
cific Ocean, and when crossing the 180th meridian of lon- 
gitude. Thursday, November 11th, w T as the day thus 
dropped, as we crossed the meridian on Wednesday, the 10th, 
about three o'clock in the afternoon. So that to us on the 
" City of Peking" that week was the shortest of our lives, it 
having only six days. We went to bed Wednesday night, 
slept only eight or ten hours, and awakened Friday morn- 
ing. 

Every one understands that in traveling around the 
world from east to west a day is lost. Four minutes are 
lost for every degree of longitude passed; and as there 



20 



Crossing the Pacific. 



are three hundred and sixty degrees, these multiplied by 
four minutes give twenty-four hours. In order, therefore, 
to adjust the calendar, it is necessary at some point in the 
journey to pass over one day. Navigators have agreed to 
make this change on the 180th degree of longitude east or 
west of Greenwich. When they reach this meridian sail- 
ing westward, they drop a day ; when they reach it sailing 
eastward, they repeat a day. This matter of dropping or 
gaining a day solves very satisfactorily a question which has 
troubled not a little some portions of the Christian world. 
There are some people and some sects who hold that not a 
certain portion of time, but a particular day, is sacred, and 
that we have no right to observe as the Sabbath any other 
day than that originally set apart when God gave the com- 
mandment at the creation. 

The shape of our earth and its revolution on its axis 
makes it absolutely impossible that all its inhabitants 
should begin to observe the Sabbath at the same time. Com- 
mencing at New York and going west, the Sabbath begins 
an hour later for each fifteen degrees of longitude passed. 
So that when one has gone half around the world, the peo- 
ple with whom he finds himself are just beginning the Sab- 
bath, while those whom he left are just finishing it. And 
if he should make his journey entirely around without drop- 
ping a day, when he again reached New York he would 
find that he was observing Monday as the Sabbath, while 
every one else would still be observing Sunday. If all the 
Seventh-day Adventists would make this voyage around 
the world, going west, conscientiously observing every sev- 
enth day, and making no change in their calendar, when 
they again reached home they would find themselves in 
harmony with the rest of the Christian world, and we would 
.perhaps ..hear. no more about their scruples for the particu- 
lar seventh day of the week. _ . . . 



Crossing the Pacific. 21 

These Chinese sailors are the most stolid, imperturbable 
seamen whom I have ever seen. I have not heard a song 
or a shout or a cheer since being on board. Occasionally, 
when tugging away at the ropes, they will indulge in a low, 
monotone hum, but that is all. Even the commands from 
the officers are given in a low voice, and altogether it is 
the quietest crew that I have ever known. The contrast is 
very striking between them and the negro crew of a Missis- 
sippi steamer, who sing from morning till night, and some- 
times nearly all night, their rich voices making the air me- 
lodious with " 'Way down on the Suwannee River." 

About three o'clock Friday morning, November 19th, a 
heavy wind began to blow, which lasted for twenty hours, 
and gave us an experience which we have no desire to re- 
peat. The captain and other old sailors said it w r as the 
worst sea they ever saw, and we desire to see no worse. The 
waves piled up like mountains, and it looked for awhile as 
if we should never see home or native land again. The ship 
rolled so that I could hardly hold myself in my berth, and 
the timbers creaked and strained and groaned as though 
they were alive and being torn limb from limb. The deck 
w r as washed from fore to aft with heavy seas, sky-lights w T ere 
broken, strong iron girders snapped, doors burst in, and the 
lower cabin flooded with w r ater. Several were slightly in- 
jured, and one Chinese cabin-boy was thought to be fatally 
so. All the rest, thanks to a merciful Providence, "escaped 
safe to land." But I do not think that I ever more fully 
realized how blessed a thing it is to have your trust staid 
on One who "holds the winds in his hand," and who "sit- 
teth above the water floods forever." 

The blow which we had developed into a full-sized ty- 
phoon lower down the coast, and several ships suffered se- 
verely. Our friends will understand what we escaped when 
they learn that an Eastern typhoon is a Western cyclone. 



JAPAN, THE LAND OF THE SUNRISE. 



HEKE to wander far away, 

On from island into island at the gate- way of the day. 
Larger constellations burning, mellow moons and happy skies, 
Breadths of tropic shade and palms in cluster, knots of Paradise. 



Summer isles of Eden lying in dark-purple spheres of sea. 

— Tennyson. 
(23) 




First Days in Japan, 



S the shadow of a great rock in a wear}?- land" was 
the sight of the green hills and gray rocks of Japan 
as I looked from my port-hole on the morning of Novem- 
ber 20th. The sea was blue and calm, with not a trace of 
the angry waves of the day and night before, and the east- 
ern horizon was roseate with the blushes that heralded the 
coming of the king of day. Hastily dressing, I went on 
deck and had a full view of the shores of Japan, and one 
who has never been at sea can form no conception of how 
sweet the sight of land is to those who have seen nothing 
but sky and water for three weeks. Hills crested with tim- 
ber skirt the Bay of Yeddo, and the beaches are dotted 
with thatched huts and white stone houses. Fishing-junks, 
sanpans, and small sailing-vessels, with square-set sails on 
which were marked peculiar devices, dotted the water in 
every direction, propelled by stout, muscular men, half 
naked, some of them altogether so, except for a breech-clout 
around their loins. These strange, half-savage looking 
men, with their uncovered black hair and sinewy limbs, and 
the queer boats, made us realize that we w T ere approaching 
a foreign shore. 

Up this same bay, on the 7th of July, 1853, steered 
Commodore Perry, sent by Daniel Webster, the first of our 
statesmen who insisted upon opening Japan to Western 
commerce. On that shore to which we were going stood 
the natives who thought Perry's ships imprisoned volca- 

(25) 



26 



Japap, the Land of the Sunrise. 



noes, and who, to prevent his return, built mud forts and 
lined them on the outside with paper, that they might re- 
semble stone. How difficult to realize the changes that 
have taken place in these thirty-three years! Now light- 
houses all along the coast invite the commerce of the 
world, and Japanese steamers and iron-clads are in her har- 
bors and on all her seas. Indeed, an English captain told 
me that, for its size, Japan has the best navy in the world. 

As we steamed up the bay, we caught our first sight of 
Fuji-Yama, the sacred mountain of Japan. Tower ing above 
all other objects, its snow-clad summit fourteen thousand feet 
above the sea, it was the most prominent feature in the land- 
scape. Fuji is an extinct volcano, a truncated cone, with 
a crater three miles in circumference, and in clear weather 
is visible a hundred miles at sea. Tradition says that in the 
year 286 B.C. the earth opened in the Province of Omi, near 
Kioto, and Lake Biwa, eighteen by sixty miles, was formed 
as the result, in the shape of the Biwa, or four-stringed lute, 
and at the same time Fuji rose as a flaming volcano, the last 
eruption of which was in 1707. This mountain is to the 
Japanese what Mount Olympus was to the Greeks, save 
that to many of them it is not only the dwelling-place of 
the gods, but a very god itself. Accordingly they put it in 
all their pictures, on all their finest porcelain, and adorn 
every work of art with its snowy image. 

As we entered the harbor, or rather open roadstead 
where the navies of the w T orld might ride, we saw numerous 
passenger steamers, sailing-vessels, native boats, and several 
iron-clads, with the flags of various nations displayed, among 
w 7 hich were the familiar stars and stripes, which never ap- 
peared so beautiful as when thus seen, five thousand 
miles from home. The native boats w T ere darting about 
in every direction, and the scene was a gay and animated 
one as we reached our anchorage, a short distance from the 



First Days in Japan. 



27 



Hatoba, a curved stone breakwater, going out several hun- 
dred feet into the bay. The Japanese sanpans quickly 
surrounded us, eager to take passengers ashore, and among 
them was a steam launch from the Grand Hotel; but all 
must wait until the United States mail has been taken off 
in the handsome boat which has been sent for that purpose, 
and which was well filled with the hundred or more sacks 
of mail matter which the "City of Peking" had brought. 
The hotel launch soon landed us at the dock, and ascending 
the stone steps, after going through the formalities of the 
custom-house, we took our first ride in & jinrikisha, which is 
a purely Japanese institution, and was invented by a na- 
tive of Tokio. This invention only dates from 1870, and 
previous to that there were no wheeled vehicles in Japan. 
But she then got on wheels, and has been on wheels ever 
since. 

The jinrikisha is simply an enlarged perambulator on 
two wheels, drawn by a cooly. One cannot help feeling, 
when he takes his seat in it, as if he were a big baby whom 
his nurse had tucked up and was taking out for an airing. 
Some timorous people whom I have known in America 
would be greatly delighted with the jinrikisha, as there is 
no danger of the horse running away; and as your steed 
looks out for accidents, you have nothing to do but surren- 
der yourself to the pleasure of the ride and take in all the 
strange sights and sounds that surround you. After a con- 
siderable experience in riding in these " Pull man " carriages, 
I confess to a great liking for them, and I would be much 
pleased were I sure of having as cheap and comfortable a 
method of getting around wherever I go in my travels. 
The charges are from six to ten cents per hour, and the 
poor coolies well earn their money. These jinrikisha men 
form a distinct class, and the only drawback to my enjoy- 
ment in riding in the little carriages is the fact, which I 



28 



Japan, the Land of the Sunrise. 



cannot forget, that I am being pulled by men. They are 
a patient, good-natured, long-suffering set, always on hand 
ready for any emergency, and although they sometimes 
impose a little on strangers, generally honest. They are to 
be seen everywhere, dressed in every conceivable costume, 
from nothing up to a full-fledged American suit, and with 
wonderfully developed muscles and marvelous powers of en- 
durance. They will average five miles an hour and easily 
travel thirty or forty miles a day. Eev. Mr. Soper, of To- 
kio, told us of one instance where one of them pulled him 
sixty miles in one day, but this was unusual. 

We considered it a happy incident, and worthy of men- 
tion, that the first man to greet us after we put our feet on 
Japanese soil was Rev. Henry Loomis, agent of the Amer- 
ican Bible Society. It was peculiarly gratifying to find 
this noble society so firmly established and doing such good 
work in this Empire. Mr. Loomis has been here for a num- 
ber of years, and is one of the most useful and efficient 
members of the devoted band of missionary workers at Yo- 
kohama. This society began its work in Japan in 1874, 
and in the twelve years of its existence it has manufactured 
422,404 Bibles, Testaments, and parts of Testaments, and 
has circulated 359,029 volumes. Fifty-seven colporteurs are 
employed, and the report for October shows 6,460 miles 
traveled, and 4,560 Bibles and parts of Bibles sold and cir- 
culated. Who can measure the good that is being accom- 
plished in the w 7 orld by the great Bible Societies? They 
are giving the Word of Life to all nations, and are among 
the most important of evangelizing agencies. 

A stranger's first impressions of Yokohama are very 
pleasant. From the custom-house to the Grand Hotel, we 
drove along a wide, smooth Bund, with the beautiful bay 
on one side, and on the other foreign-built residences, stores, 
and hotels that look as if they might have been trans- 



First Days in Japan. 



29 



planted from some American city. Yokohama is more like 
a foreign than a Japanese city, and has the largest foreign 
population of any place in the Empire — about fifteen hun- 
dred. The native population is estimated at sixty thou- 
sand. The principal portion of the city is located in what 
was originally a swamp, but which has been drained by nu- 
merous low, shallow, tidal canals crossing each other at 
right angles and spanned by many wooden bridges. The 
streets are generally narrow and closely built up with hongs 
or warehouses, a few respectable stores and banks, and vast 
numbers of shops, bungalows, shipping-offices, establish- 
ments of Chinese money-changers, Government buildings, 
and Japanese residences. Most of the foreign residences and 
all the mission-school buildings are built on the "Bluff," the 
high plateau several miles long and about half a mile wide 
which rises considerably above the native town, and marks 
the level of the ancient coast. This makes a very hand- 
some suburban town of wooden villas and neat cottages, 
embowered in flowers and evergreens, with beautiful gar- 
dens and walks. From this elevation there is a fine view 
of the city below, stretching out over the reclaimed swamp. 
This is perhaps the most pleasant place at which to live in 
Japan, and we found it a very delightful community. The 
social surroundings are of the most pleasant character, and 
one might well fancy himself in a New England village, if 
he was not so frequently accosted by the pathetic cry of 
"Kiksha." 

It was something of a surprise to find in this far-off land 
so well-conducted a house as the Grand Hotel. It is fully 
equal to the average hotel in our American cities. The 
proprietors are Americans, and nearly all the servants 
speak English, so that we felt very much at home in our 
sunny, elegantly furnished room. A large annex is in proc- 
ess of construction, which, when completed, will make this 



30 



Japan, the Land of the Sunrise. 



hotel one of the largest and handsomest to be found in the 
East. 

After tiffin, we secured jinrikishas and rode for several 
hours through the native city. Of course it was full of 
novelty and interest to us, and every thing we saw remind- 
ed us that we were in a strange land. The narrow streets 
swarmed with people, the women looking as if they had just 
stepped off a Japanese fan or tea-box, and many of the men 
as if they had just stepped out of their clothes. Sandwiched 
everywhere were the children, all homely and all seeming 
to have the epizootic. Children in Japan seem, like Topsy, 
to "just grow." They are as plentiful as blackberries in 
Mississippi, or hickory-nuts in South Missouri. The babies 
are strapped to the backs of the mothers or larger children, 
as North American Indian squaws carry their papooses, 
and I have seen women washing clothes, and boys dancing 
on stilts, with queer little round-faced, shaved-headed, and 
almond-eyed babies fast asleep on their backs. Most of the 
children in Japan, however, are fortunately good-humored, 
and I have only seen two or three crying babies since land- 
ing here. 

We found Yokohama a quiet, clean city, but it seemed 
as if everybody was on a frolic. The native shops are little 
rooms about ten feet square, elevated two and a half feet 
above the street, with the side next to the street entirely 
open, while the proprietor squats on clean straw mats in the 
center of his goods or wares. There are no counters or stools, 
except in the large silk establishments, and the purchaser 
stands in the street in front of the shop and buys what he 
wishes. But, as in all Eastern countries, so here, he must 
be sure not to pay the asking price unless he wishes to give 
three or four times the value of the article. The proprie- 
tors, with their families, live in little rooms back of these 
shops, destitute of furniture, stoves, or fire-places, while the 



First Days in Japan. 



31 



children play in the streets and alleys. There are no side- 
walks to the streets in Japan, and as the jinrikisha men go 
bowling along they give a peculiar cry, " Hike ! hike ! " which 
warns pedestrians and makes them scatter right and left. 

Through long rows of these little shops with their queer 
contents and queerer inmates, which reminded us of chil- 
dren playing at "keeping store," we rode, stopping occa- 
sionally to examine some object of interest, and trying to 
realize that we were actually in Asia and on the other side of 
the globe from our native land. We stopped at a small 
Buddhist temple, and saw, for the first time, a human being 
worshiping a wooden image. It was an old woman who rev- 
erently approached the shrine, struck the gong overhead to 
attract the attention of the god, threw her offering into the 
money-box (these heathen always pay before they worship, 
and there is a large contribution-box before every idol and 
shrine), and then, striking her hands several times, clasped 
them together and devoutly bent her head, muttering a 
prayer to the work of men's hands, who, though " having 
ears, hear not." 

Our first Sunday in Japan was a memorable day. Mr. 
Loomis called at the hotel soon after breakfast and gave us 
the pleasing intelligence that Eev. George Muller, the 
founder of the celebrated orphanages at Bristol, England, 
Avould preach at the Union Church at eleven o'clock. We 
accompanied our friends to a native service which was held 
at an earlier hour in the same house. We found collected 
a large, orderly congregation of some three hundred and 
fifty Japanese, who were listening attentively to an earnest 
native preacher. This Church is connected with the United 
Church of Christ, an organization composed of five consoli- 
dated Presbyterian bodies, and numbers three hundred and 
seventy members. It is self-supporting, and also makes lib- 
eral contributions to the missionary cause. The congrega- 



32 



Japan, the Land of the Sunrise. 



tion all sung, and these Japanese have deep, rich voices. 
They were the same songs of Zion, in a strange land and in 
a strange tongue. At the conclusion of the service, after the 
benediction, the whole congregation resumed their seats and 
bowed their heads for a few moments in silent prayer, and 
then quietly and reverently left the house of God. The uni- 
versal practice in all the churches, both native and foreign, 
in Japan, is for the worshipers thus to bow before and after 
service. As I have seen and admired it, I have thought 
our American congregations might learn some salutary les- 
sons in church propriety from these converted heathen. 
The unseemly drawing on of overcoats and cloaks while the 
doxology is being sung; the grasping of hats, canes, and 
parasols while the benediction is being pronounced, and the 
hum of conversation and laughter as the people rush and 
clatter out of the house, is a desecration which is never seen 
or heard in Japan. 

We deemed it most fortunate that we had the opportu- 
nity- of hearins; Mr. Muller, whose remarkable life of faith 
and prayer is known throughout Christendom. He is now 
eighty-two years old, has been a Christian sixty-one years, 
and for fifty-six years pastor of one of the largest churches 
in Bristol, England. He began his work of faith forty-two 
years ago, and has educated thousands of orphan children 
without ever asking for one dollar of money. He has sim- 
ply prayed all these years for what he wanted, and God 
has always heard and answered him. The money has come 
in from all sources as needed, and he has thus carried on 
the most wonderful work of the present century. He has 
at present five large orphanages at Bristol. For eleven 
years and eight months he has been doing evangelistic work, 
and has been over the world several times, having preached 
in thirty-five different countries, in German, French, and 
English, and in seventeen, languages by interpreters. 



Mr. Muller is full of earnestness and simplicity, and his 
very presence was a benediction to me. He retains his 
vigor and strength of mind and body, and, though venera- 
ble in appearance, looks as if he might yet live and preach 
a number of years. He took his text from Matthew xxviii. 
19, 20: " Go ye therefore, and teach all nations," etc., 
dwelling more particularly on the last clause, "And lo, I 
am with you alway, even unto the end of the world." His 
sermon was delivered with much force and feeling, and con- 
tained the very marrow of the gospel. At night we heard 
him again in a prayer-meeting, which was held at one of 
the school-buildings on the Bluff. His talk was especially 
to Christians, and was a very precious and comforting one. 

The commander of the American man-of-war, the " Ma- 
rion," lying in the harbor at Yokohama is an earnest 
Christian — a Methodist — and wished us to come aboard 
with some friends in the afternoon and conduct a service 
for the men. At five o'clock he sent his steam launch to 
the hotel for us, and w 7 ith half a dozen others we went 
aboard and Mr. Palmore delivered a very earnest and ef- 
fective sermon to the hundred and fifty marines and offi- 
cers. 

After the sermon quite an interesting coincidence w 7 as 
brought to light. Mr. Loomis, in closing the services, gave 
an incident which occurred while he was in the Union 
army at the siege of Petersburg, Virginia. When we re- 
turned to the captain's cabin, he and I compared notes, 
and found that we were directly opposite each other in 
that memorable siege, he behind the Federal breastworks 
and I behind the Confederate. After all these years, we 
had met again in a foreign land, on board a man-of-war of 
our common country, no longer enemies, but soldiers in the 
same great army and under the same glorious leader, 
3 



n. 

Japan and tie Japanese, 



HE Japanese Empire extends over a vast cluster of 
islands of different size, situated off the east coast of 
Asia, four hundred miles from the main-land, from which 
it is separated by the Sea of Japan and the Strait of Corea. 
It is washed on the east and south by the sluggish rollers 
of the Pacific, and on the north by the Sea of Okhotsk. 
There are four thousand and eight of these islands, but only 
eight hundred of them are of any size, and the Empire 
practically consists of four islands, Yezo, Shikoku, Kiushiu, 
and the unnamed Hondo or Honshiu, or main-land, which 
is considerably larger than the other three islands combined. 
This latter island is improperly called Xiphon. It is eight 
hundred miles long, and has an area of about eighty thou- 
sand square miles. The area of the entire kingdom is a little 
more than one hundred and fifty thousand square miles, be- 
ing something greater than that of the British Islands. 
The islands of Japan have often been compared to those 
of Great Britain, as they lie off the coast of Asia much 
as those of Britain do off the coast of Europe. The 
southern portion of the islands lies within the sub-trop- 
ical belt, and the climate is warm and genial, but in the 
northern part of Yezo the winters are quite severe. The 
country, as a whole, corresponds pretty nearly in latitude 
with the eastern coast-line of the United States, adding 
Xova Scotia and Newfoundland; and the contrasts in cli- 
mate in the northern and southern extremities of our 
(34) 




Japan and the Japanese. 



35 



country are not more remarkable than those which are ob- 
served in the extreme northern and southern regions of 
Japan. 

The name Japan is a corruption of Marco Polo's term, 
Zipangu, which represents the Chinese Shi-pen-kue, mean- 
ing "root of day" or "Sunrise Kingdom." The first knowl- 
edge that Europeans had of these lands was derived from 
this great Venetian traveler, who, in the thirteenth centu- 
ry, spent some twenty years in China. He wrote such a 
description of this land lying to the eastward as he could 
obtain from the Chinese, and his glowing accounts incited 
Columbus to start in quest of it. When this discoverer 
landed in the Bahamas he believed himself to be in Zipan- 
gu. Mendez Pinto, a Portuguese adventurer, seems to have 
been one of the first Europeans who landed on Japanese soil, 
early in the sixteenth century. He carried back such re- 
ports of the riches and magnificence of the country that 
great numbers of traders flocked thither. Missionaries fol- 
lowed in the track of commerce, and in 1549 Francis Xav- 
ier, the great "Apostle of the Indies," carried Catholicism to 
Japan. It proved a fruitful soil for the growth of this per- 
verted form of Christianity, and many of the nobility as 
well as large numbers of the people became Catholics. 
But in less than a century the Government became jealous 
of the growing power of this new religion, and in 1587 an 
edict was issued for the banishment of the missionaries. A 
few years after this edict was renewed, and twenty-three 
priests were put to death in one day at Nagasaki. The 
Catholics, on their side, took no measures to pacify the Gov- 
ernment, but defied the authorities and began to overthrow 
idols and pull down heathen temples. This inaugurated 
an era of dreadful persecutions, and thousands of native 
Christians were put to death, their school-houses and 
churches burned, and their faith denounced as treason both 



36 



Japan, the Land of the Sunrise. 



against the gods and the State. In 1637 a fresh persecution 
broke out, which proved even bloodier than the preceding 
ones, the inciting cause being a charge that a conspiracy 
had been formed between the Japanese Catholics and the 
Portuguese and Spanish merchants to overthrow the Impe- 
rial Government and establish the papal power in the Em- 
pire. On this occasion edicts were issued forbidding Jap- 
anese, on any pretext, to quit the country, and the follow- 
ing decree was published throughout the kingdom : " So long 
as the sun shall warm the earth, let no Christian be so bold 
as to come to Japan; and let all know that the King of 
Spain himself, or the Christian's God, or the great God of 
all, if he violates this command, shall pay for it with his head r ." 
Even the Portuguese were expelled from the country and 
their trade transferred to the Dutch, who were known to 
be the enemies of Roman Catholicism. But in 1640 the 
Christians openly rebelled, and, after varying fortunes, a 
fort in which a large number of them had taken refuge was 
captured and thousands were massacred. This ended Jap- 
anese intercourse with all foreigners, and for more than 
two hundred years Christianity was unknown in Japan, 
and Buddhism and Shintooism reigned supreme. 

To our own country belongs the honor of unlocking the 
doors of this hermit nation and throwing wide open the 
sea-gates which had remained barred and bolted for so 
many centuries. In 1852, complaints having been made 
of the treatment of American seamen who had been wrecked 
on the Japanese coast, at the instance of Daniel Webster 
Commodore Perry was sent to investigate the matter, and 
not only demand protection for our seamen, but also seek to 
open trade with the secluded Island Empire- In July, 1853, 
on a beautiful Sabbath morning, his fleet sailed up the Bay 
of Yeddo and cast anchor near where now stands the city 
}f Yokohama. The first Christian services that were ever 



Japan and the Japanese. 



37 



sung 

■ 



held on those waters were conducted that day by this brave 
commander, as, having read the one hundredth Psalm, he 
suns: with his Christian crew : 

All people that on earth do dwell 

Sing to the Lord with cheerful voice; 
Him serve with mirth, his praise forthtell, 
Come ye before him and rejoice. 

The expedition was a successful one, and one year later 
the commodore made a treaty with the Japanese Govern- 
ment which opened its gates to American and foreign inter- 
course. Since that period the advance of Japan has been 
wonderful, and is unparalleled in the annals of national his- 
tory. She is truly a nation born in a day, and her history 
for the past thirty years is one of the marvels of the nine- 
teenth century. 

The present Mikado is the one hundred and twenty-third 
member of a dynasty which has ruled Japan for twenty- 
five hundred years. This is the longest dynasty which has 
ever ruled an empire in the history of the world, and ante- 
dates the Eoman Empire. Jimmu Tenno, the founder of 
the dynasty, w T as the first Emperor Japan ever had, and be- 
gan to reign 660 B.C. About seven hundred years ago, 
the daimios, or feudal lords, began to exercise great power in 
the Empire, which was an absolute despotism, and demand- 
ed that one of their number be made commander-in-chief 
of the army. Accordingly the court of the Mikado created 
the office of Shogun or Governor Generalissimo, and ap- 
pointed Yoritomo the first Shogun. He was one. of the 
most noted heroes in Japanese history, and during his Sho- 
gunate acquired supreme control. It is generally stated 
that for a thousand years Japan had a double-headed gov- 
ernment with two rulers — a civil ruler, in whose hands 
were really the reins of power, with his capital at Yeddo, 
and who was called the Shogun or Tycoon ; and an ecclesi- 



Japan, the Land of the Sunrise. 



astical ruler, who was considered so sacred that no common 
eye could rest upon him, and who never went beyond the 
precincts of the palace except in a carefully curtained 
chair. This was the Mikado, who had his capital at Kio- 
to. The fact is, however, that the Mikado was always rec- 
ognized as the nominal Emperor, though, in reality, he was 
a mere figure-head. He dwelt amidst a semi-sacred nobil- 
ity and a host of learned priests, a real prisoner, in a quiet 
capital filled with temples and colleges; while the Shogun, 
from his moated castle, ruling the turbulent vassals and en- 
forcing military authority in every part of the land, resided 
in busy, active Yeddo, with its million of inhabitants, sur- 
rounded with wealth and luxury and all the pomp of pow- 
er. For nearly five centuries this usurpation was held in 
three famous families, the whole period being one of civil 
strife and bloodshed. In the latter part of the sixteenth 
century the famous Iyeyasu family came into power, which 
founded the line of Tokujawa Sh guns, who held the reins 
of power for two hundred and fifty years. Iyeyasu, the 
founder of this liue, was one of the greatest characters in 
the history of the Empire, and was the combined Moses and 
Cromwell of Japan. 

In 1854 the first treaty was signed with a foreign power, 
and certain ports were then for the first time thrown open 
to foreigners, who began to flock to Japan from England 
and America. Foreign ideas came in with these immi- 
grants, and from the first influx of this new blood the pow- 
er of the Shogun began to wane. 

In 1858 the present Mikado, Mitsuhito, ascended the 
throne, and, though he was but a child, his friends and ad- 
herents began to assert his authority. A bloody interne- 
cine war followed, which lasted for ten years, but in 1868 
the Shogun was finally defeated. The decisive battle was 
fought at Uyeno, in Yeddo, in 1868, after which the last of 



Japan and the Japanese. 



the Shoguns was banished to private life. The Emperor 
then removed his capital to Yeddo, changed the name of 
the city to Tokio, rebuilt and improved it, and began a new 
era in the history of Japan. 

Since this revolution Japan has been rapidly advancing 
toward a free government. The Mikado has promised to 
establish a National Assembly in 1890, and, as paving the 
way from an absolute and irresponsible monarchy to a 
limited constitutional one, in 1878 local elective and repre- 
sentative provincial assemblies were established. These as- 
semblies correspond to our State Legislatures. There is no 
record of any other elective and representative body in Asia, 
where, the human race was cradled and where more than 
one-half of the world's population dwells. This movement 
may spread and be the means of liberating 800,000,000 of 
people from oppression and tyranny. 

When the Emperor made his proclamation announcing 
these reforms, he said: "All measures shall be decided by 
public opinion. The uncivilized customs of former times 
shall be broken through. The impartiality and justice dis- 
played in the workings of nature shall be adopted as a ba- 
sis of action. Intellect and learning shall be sought for 
throughout the world in order to establish the foundations 
of the Empire." 

The Emperor is now thirty-four years of age, and is said 
to be a rather heavy, good-natured, indolent man, but he 
has gathered around him as the heads of departments the 
most enterprising and progressive men in Japan, and they 
are making this the foremost of all. the Eastern nations. 
As the head of the Chinaman is turned toward the past, 
that of the Japanese is turned toward the future. One of 
the most striking traits of the Japanese is the readiness with 
which they adopt improvements from every quarter. They 
are taking the best portions of the civilization of Europe 



40 



Japan, the Land of the Sunrise. 



and America, and are building up an eclectic nation, which, 
if no great calamity overtakes it, promises to be one of the 
grandest empires of the future. They have taken as their 
models the French army, the English navy, the American 
educational system, and the German medical school. They 
are determined to be w the heir of all the ages/' and, while 
much of their civilization is as yet necessarily in a crude 
state, they are an astonishment to every intelligent observer 
who goes among them and looks into the workings of their 
plans. Their schools, universities, manufactories, ships, 
railroads, and all industrial enterprises are after the world's 
most approved models. The Osaka Mint, the most exten- 
sive in the world, and in capacity second only to the San 
Francisco Mint, has the finest machinery that was ever put 
into a similar establishment. The Japaneee navy has the 
finest man-of-war afloat, and the United States is now build- 
ing two iron-clads after the model thus furnished. The rail- 
roads are built and equipped according to the latest and 
best plans, and it is stated that under the baton system, 
which is used, collisions and other accidents are reduced to 
a minimum. 

Japan offers perhaps the only historical instance of a na- 
tion thus voluntarily changing its civilization, within the 
short space of a generation, to adopt a higher and better 
civilization. The "old Japan " has almost ceased to exist, 
and new Japan is a land of nineteenth century civilization, 
illuminated by electricity, traversed by railways, speaking 
through telephones, guarded by repeating rifles, breech- 
loading cannon, and turreted navies of steel. The medical 
science of Paris and of Berlin is familiar to the students of 
Tokio; the philosophy of Herbert Spencer and of Buckle 
is taught in the schools of Kioto; the perfecting press 
prints daily editions of Japanese papers ; students in chem- 
istry and dynamics make the boldest of experiments in the 



Japan and the Japanese. 



41 



Imperial University, and Japanese literary circles discuss 
Mill and Stewart and Huxley. The whole Empire is in a 
ferment, and there is no quarter of the country which has 
not heard the thunder of the wheels of progress. As has 
been said, "the Empire of JajDan has risen from the low 
plane of feudalism to its present height of civilization al- 
most as rapidly as its sacred mountain, Fujisan, is said to 
have risen from the level of the sea in a single night." 

One trouble, however, which suggests itself is that Japan 
is trying to accomplish in a few years what it has taken 
Western nations centuries to reach. Just now, there is 
what Joseph Cook would call " a conflagration of enthusi- 
asm" for every thing English — dress, food, houses, lan- 
guage, and customs. In some respects this is unfortunate, 
for it would be a calamity for the Japanese peasant to aban- 
don the simple food and habits of his country for a style of 
living which is far more expensive and artificial. Accord- 
ing to the manner of living of the lower class, a Japanese 
family of three or four can live on five dollars a month. 
This seems almost incredible, yet there is no doubt of its 
correctness. Their houses are of the simplest construction 
— rarely more than three or four rooms, without any furni- 
ture whatever, and unpainted. The rooms are separated 
by sliding panels of light woodwork, divided into panes of 
translucent paper — which may be either windows, doors, or 
walls, according to the purpose to which they are applied — 
while the roofs are either thatched with straw or covered 
with tiling. The floors are covered with beautiful soft mats 
made of very finely plaited rice straw, about two inches 
thick. Each mat is three by six feet, and rooms are al- 
ways made of the size of so many mats. A Japanese al- 
ways removes his shoes or clogs when entering a house, and 
sits or rather "squats" upon the floor, never using a chair 
or stool. Dining-tables are about six inches high and fif- 



42 



Japan, the Land of (he Sunrise*. 



teen to eighteen inches square. These are placed on the 
mats, and each person has a table to himself. They use 
neither knives nor forks, but chopsticks. They double 
their legs up under them, and sit resting upon their knees 
and heels. 

The Japanese food consists entirely of rice, fish, vegeta- 
bles, and fruits. They use neither bread nor meat, except 
the latter on very rare occasions. Eice and tea are the 
great staples, and many families have nothing else. The 
seas of Japan are unexcelled in the world for the multitude 
and variety of the choicest edible fish. Many bays and 
gulfs indent the islands, and have been for ages the happy 
hunting-grounds of the fisherman. The rivers are also well 
stocked with fresh-water fish, and fish of all kinds are con- 
sequently very plentiful and very cheap. This character 
of food enables those who follow the habits of their ances- 
tors to live very economically. An intelligent, educated 
young Japanese told me that he was living at a native 
hotel where fifty cents per day was the price of first-class 
board, thirty cents of second-class, and t wenty cents of third- 
class. But foreign food and foreign ways of living are very 
expensive, and if they should be universally adopted they 
would bankrupt and impoverish the country. 

The Japanese are an honest, industrious, frugal, and po- 
lite people. In passing through the cities and traveling in 
the interior, it is rare to see any idlers. Men, women, and 
children are all at work, and appear cheerful and good- 
natured. They are the most polite people I have ever seen. 
They have been called the French of the East, but they 
might even teach lessons of courtesy to these proverbially 
polite people. Gentlemen uncover their heads when speak- 
ing to each other, and never exchange greetings or farewells 
without the most profound bows. Their parting salutation 
is Sayonari — " We part since it must be so." Girls are 



Japan and, the Japanese. 



43 



taught etiquette as American girls are taught grammar, 
and frequently when girls are sent to mission-schools their 
parents require that they be taught Japanese etiquette. 

Joseph Cook calls the Japanese " the diamond edition of 
humanity." They are all physically small, the average 
height of the men being about five feet two inches, and of 
the women even less; but they are fine-grained, and sus- 
ceptible of a high degree of cultivation. 

The origin of the Japanese and their race affinity is un- 
known. We are apt to associate the Japanese and Chinese 
together, but they are essentially different. The Chinese 
are Mongolian, while the Japanese are a mixed race. The 
aborigines of Japan, now called Ainos, of whom there are 
about ten thousand in the north of Japan, were a copper- 
colored race of Esquimaux. One conquering race was 
probably composed of Mongolians from Corea, while a third 
race were Malays from the Malay archipelago. The mixt- 
ure of these three races has probably given the Japanese 
to the world. But as this whole ethnological question is 
shrouded in mystery, we can only take the Japanese as 
we find them — a race of thirty-eight millions speaking one 
language, of fair-skinned, black-haired, almond-eyed, quick- 
witted, vivacious, brave, courteous, and progressive little 
people, who claim to have come from heaven originally, 
and many of whom we sincerely hope will get back there 
wdien they die. 

Soon after coming in contact with the Japanese, I was 
impressed with their resemblance in physiognomy to the 
North American Indians. Both have the same straight black 
hair, black eyes, scant or no beard, and copper color. I had 
never heard the theory advanced of the Japanese origin of 
our aborigines, but I find that it is by no means an improb- 
able supposition. 

The Kuro Shiro or Black Stream of Japan, the Gulf- 



44 



Japan, the Land of the Sunrise. 



stream of the Pacific, arising from the equatorial belt, flows 
up past Formosa, Japan, the Kurile and Aleutian Islands, 
Alaska, Oregon and California, and thence bends westward 
to the Sandwich Islands. A junk or tree floating in the 
Kuro Shiro, off the coast of Japan, would, if not stopped or 
stranded, drift from Japan to Hawaii. For many centu- 
ries Japanese fishing-boats and junks, caught in the easterly 
gales and typhoons, have been swept into the Kuro Shiro 
and carried to America. From 1782 to 1876 lists have 
been made of certified instances, with dates, of forty-nine 
Japanese junks wrecked, met or seen on American or Ha- 
waiian shores. 

X.OW what is more probable than that what has happened 
so often since 1492 happened previous to that date, and 
that the first settlers in America were Japanese, brought to 
these shores in junks caught in typhoons and swept along 
in the Kuro Shiro? There are many striking resemblances 
between the American aborigines and the Japanese, not 
onlv in appearance, but in customs, religion, language, su- 
perstition, etc. Here is an untilled field which some enter- 
prising ethnologist or antiquarian would do well to enter, 
and which might yield very rich and interesting results. 

The Japanese have many singular customs, though a great 
many apocryphal stories have been told about them. In 
preparing their dead for burial they do not lay them out 
as we do, but usually double them up and bury them in a 
square box. This explains a circumstance which has puz- 
zled manv — the clustering of tombstones so near together in 
their grave-yards. They generally bury the dead without 
clothing, and the mourners wear white as a sign of grief. 
Cremation is being practiced very largely, especially in the 
cities, and in Tokio there is one of the largest crematories 
in the East. In this capital city no dead are allowed to be 
buried within the city limits. 



Japan and the Japanese. 45 



Marriage is usually arranged by consultation with the 
relatives, though love matches are by no. means uncommon. 
When the appointed time for the marriage arrives, the 
bride goes to the home of her intended husband, accompa- 
nied by her relatives and friends, and when the company are 
assembled, the bride and groom simply exchange gifts, 
among which are cups of SaJci, which each drink. They 
then acknowledge each other as man and wife, the mar- 
riage is recorded in the government office, and the ceremony 
is complete. The wife owes filial allegiance of a very se- 
vere kind to the mother-in-law, and much domestic infelic- 
ity in Japan is attributable to this source. On the part of 
the man, divorces are very easily obtained, and he has only 
to apply to the proper officials to have the marriage an- 
nulled, but it is very difficult and almost impossible for the 
woman to obtain a divorce. When an only daughter mar- 
ries, the young man marrying her is required to take her 
name, as otherwise the family name would die out, which 
cannot be allowed in Japan. For this reason an only son 
of one family and an only daughter of another cannot 
marry. Both men and women often change their Chris- 
tian names, but the surnames always remain the same, ex- 
cept when a married woman takes the name of her husband. 

The Japanese are a remarkably cleanly people. Their 
houses are scrupulously neat ; the wood- work is scoured ev- 
ery day until it looks as if it had been polished, and every 
speck of dirt is carefully brushed from the floor, so that 
you feel it is almost a sacrilege not to conform to their cus- 
toms and remove your shoes before entering their dwell- 
ings. Every Japanese takes a hot bath as regularly as he 
goes to bed at night, and most of them also take one in the 
morning. Formerly the sexes bathed together, but the 
government has now forbidden this under severe penalties. 
This practice of hot bathing has doubtless conduced very 



46 



Japan, the Land of the Sunrise. 



largely to preserving the health of the peasants, who work 
in the rice-fields all day, up to their knees in mud and wa- 
ter, and who expose themselves in many different ways. 

One of the most hideous customs of the Japanese is that 
of the married women, who blacken their teeth and shave 
their eyebrows. Formerly this practice was universal, be- 
ing required, I suppose, by the husbands to make their wives 
unattractive to other men, but I am happy to say that the 
custom is now more honored in the breach than in the ob- 
servance, though the majority of the married women whom 
I have met were thus disfigured. One custom would, how- 
ever, doubtless find favor among American ladies — like the 
ancient Grecians, they count their age from the time of 
marriage, not from the time of birth. 

Japan leads all the Asiatic nations in the respect and 
honor which are paid to women. Is o woman's feet are ever 
bound, and among the middle and lower classes she is at 
liberty to walk and visit as in our own land, where, as De 
Tocqueville says, woman is queen. She is better educated, 
better treated, and occupies a higher position in the " Land 
of the Rising Sun " than in any country of the East, and the 
result has been that a larger number of illustrious women 
have been produced in Japan than in any other Oriental 
country. Of the one hundred and twenty-three Japanese 
sovereigns, nine have been women. The custodian of the 
divine regalia is a virgin priestess. The chief deity in 
their mythology is a woman. In literature, poetry, art, and 
song, the names of women are among the most brilliant of 
those on the long roll of fame and honor. Female educa- 
tion and female elevation are among the burning questions 
of the day in Japan. The leading paper in Tokio has for 
several weeks been publishing a series of articles on this 
subject by a distinguished Japanese educator, and all the pa- 
pers throughout the Empire contain editorials and discussions 



Japan and the Japanese. 47 



on this theme. This year, for the first time, women have been 
admitted into the Imperial University, and the Empress 
has become the patron of female education and established 
a free institution at Tokio, to which girls are admitted by 
competitive examination. 

A movement has recently been inaugurated to establish 
a "Ladies' Institute " at Tokio, with a capital of $60,000, 
which, if successful, will have a most important influence 
in elevating and educating the women of the higher class. 
The following resolutions, which were adopted at a meeting 
held September 29, 1886, outline the plan: (1) That it is 
desirable to found in Tokio an Institute for the higher ed- 
ucation of women; (2) that the Institute have for its 
object to provide a center of European life and culture in 
Tokio for the ladies of Japan, where instruction shall be 
afforded in the subject of a general education, in ethics, in 
manner, in dress, and in housekeeping; (3) that the In- 
stitute be used as a club or meeting-place for ladies, aud 

have grounds suitable for all kinds of out-door recreation ; 
(4) that an institute building be constructed containing 
a ground suite of rooms, consisting of reading, recitation, 
dining, and reception rooms, and kitchen accommodation; 
and an upper story or stories with accommodation for three 
resident lady teachers from abroad, and twelve resident pu- 
pils; (5) that the assistance of University professors be 
invited for the imparting of the higher learning; (6) that 
the English language be used as the medium of instruction, 
and special importance be attached to the acquisition of 
that language. 

I understood in Tokio that most of the money for this 
Institute had been subscribed in thirty-dollar shares, and 
that the building would soon be begun. 

Such an Institute as this, with a modified plan, giving it 
a distinctly religious feature, is greatly needed in connec- 



48 



Japan, the Land of the Sunrise. 



tion with our Southern Methodist Mission at Kobe, and I 
trust that the day is not far distant when it will be es- 
tablished. May God hasten the day for the complete re- 
generation of the women of Japan and of Asia! And let 
our Methodist women remember that in accomplishing this 
work they are to take no insignificant part. There is a 
darker side of this woman question which we refrain from 
touching, but it is sufficient to say that Japan is yet full of 
immorality and sin of the vilest description. Buddhism 
and Shiutooism, the prevalent religions, look upon woman 
only as a temptation, a snare, and an unclean thing, and 
offer to her no immortality, her only hope being to be born 
into the world again as a man. The Japanese woman 
stretches out her hands imploringly to her Christian sister 
in America, and prays for her help in striking the shackles 
from soul and mind. And her appeal has not been and 
will not be in vain. 



III. 

The Mikado's Capital, and Nikko,tlie Beautiful 



&D AY or two after arriving at Yokohama, I received a 
postal card (the Japanese have postals; their postal 
system is equal to ours, after which it is modeled), from my 
friend, the Kev. Julius Soper, presiding elder of Tokio 
District of the Japan Conference, M. E. Church, inviting 
us to come at once to Tokio, as he Avould leave soon for a 
tour of his district. Accordingly, on a bright Monday 
morning, we repaired to the large brick and stone depot — or 
station, as it is called here — which is the southern terminus 
of the Yokohama and Tokio railroad. This road is twenty 
miles in length, and is well built in English style. Japan 
has now some four hundred miles of railroad, and is rapidly 
extending her railway system. In another year it is pro- 
posed to have the road completed from Kobe to Tokio, via 
Kioto and Osaka, which will pass throngh the best and 
most populous section of the Empire. The Yokohama and 
Tokio road has a double track, fine iron bridges, neat station- 
houses, the best of rolling-stock, and elegant depots at the 
termini. At each station there is a w T ide brick platform 
w T ith barriers and turnstiles at both ends, and no person is 
allowed to pass in without a ticket, while when you reach 
your destination and pass out, the tickets are collected. 
The first-class cars are elegantly upholstered, but we saw 
no passengers in them. The second-class cars are very 
comfortable, with leather upholstery, but never crowded. 
They are divided into small square compartments, with 
4 (40) 



50 



Japan, the Land of the Sunrise. 



seats running around the four sides, except at the doors, 
which are always locked when the train is in motion. 
There are no conductors, and you are never disturbed until 
you arrive at your destination. The third-class cars are 
aways crowded, and any one but a native would find them 
very uncomfortable. 

This road passes through the great plain of Yeddo, 
which is some ninety miles from north to south, and is 
one vast, moist, paddy field, laid out in small squares like 
the map of the United States. On the right, seen through 
a somber fringe of dark green pines, is the bay, through 
whose foam-flecked azure fleets of white-sailed junks are 
plowing their way. To the left, away beyond the fields of 
rice, onions, and cotton, like giant sentinels, rise the dark 
mountains of the Oyama range; while above all, aud 
crowning the picture, is the lofty head of Fuji, white with 
the first winter's snow, and matchless in its grace and sym- 
metry. 

On this fertile Yeddo plain are not only the capital, but 
many populous cities and several hundred thriving agricult- 
ural villages. There are no farms such as we have in 
America, but the old feudal days forced all who cultivated 
the soil to cluster in villages for protection and mutual 
support. The whole country is like a garden, and men, 
women, and children are at work. Most of the soil is a 
black vegetable mold from two to ten feet in depth. Only 
about eleven millions of acres are in cultivation to feed 
and clothe thirty-eight millions of people. This is divided 
into little farms of from one to three acres, which are skill- 
fully and thoroughly worked. The land is enriched by 
liquid manure, which is applied entirely by hand, and 
yields two or three crops per annum. The rice is plant- 
ed in June and is sown in the water and slush which then 
cover the field. As soon as the plants are up a few inches, 



The Mikado's Capital, and Nilcko, the Beautiful. 51 



the natives go in and pluck them all up and carefully re- 
set them in hills. By November it is ready to be reaped, 
and it is then cut by hand with a knife, and the grain sep- 
arated from the straw by the most primitive processes — 
sometimes by threshing and sometimes by pulling the bun- 
dles through a kind of iron rake with long teeth set closely 
together. I have seen hundreds of women engaged in both 
methods. An acre of the best land produces annually 
about fifty-four bushels of rice, and the worst about thirty 
bushels. 

We also saw a number of cotton-fields along the road, 
and I was surprised to learn that Japan produces a large 
quantity of this staple, though of an inferior quality. 
There is a large cotton-mill at Yokohama. 

Tea-plantations were frequent, and in the amount of tea 
raised Japan is second only to China. All the leaves are 
dried in the sun and then baked, and the quality of the tea 
depends on the manner in which it is dried and the time 
when it is plucked. The choicest tea is from the young 
and tender leaves pulled in the spring. The Japanese do 
not make tea as we do, but simply pour hot water over the 
leaves and drink the infusion without adding either sugar 
or milk. 

The forest area of Japan is four times that under culti- 
vation, and the flora is said to be the richest and most va- 
ried in the world. There are one hundred and fifty varie- 
ties of evergreens, thirty -six kinds of useful timber wood, 
all of which are susceptible of the finest polish, thirty-sev- 
en varieties of maple, and very many roses and flowering 
plants. It is stated that flowering plants seem to blossom 
more luxuriantly in Japan than in the West. Perhaps the 
decomposed lava soil may account for this, as flowers grow- 
ing on the slopes of volcanoes are proverbially noted for 
their bright colors. But as beautiful as are the flowers 



52 



Japan, the Land of the Sunrise. 



here, they are nearly all odorless. Japan is called in the 
East the land of odorless flowers, songless birds, seedless or- 
anges, and tailless cats. 

But we have lingered a good while on the road to Tokio, 
and here we are at last in sight of the ancient city which 
we knew in our school geographies as Yeddo, and which 
we were taught was one of the largest cities in the world. 
The first sight is disappointing, as we look over a vast wil- 
derness of dingy, one-story wooden houses, relieved here 
and there by the lofty, tent-like tiled roof of a colossal 
temple. 

Mr. Soper was waiting for us at the depot, and we were 
soon seated in our jinrikishas, and going at a lively pace 
through the crowded streets of this great city. Most of the 
streets were long lanes about twenty feet wide, lined on 
either side with little one and two story shops and filled 
with a dense mass of moving humanity. But occasionally 
we would come upon some modern street, like the Tori or 
chief boulevard, with large brick buildings; and here and 
there, all through the city, were handsome Government 
buildings and foreign residences in which live officials or 
foreign employees of the government. 

The modern Tokio is a very different place from ancient 
Yeddo; it is, in a measure, both a Pompeii and a Paris — 
a place of ruins and a newly founded city. Modern ener- 
gy and civilization are everywhere found jostling the old 
indolence, ancient routine, and traditional custom. Three 
lines of street railway run from one side of the city to the 
other, while more than two thousand jinrikishas also afford 
a cheap and pleasant mode of locomotion. Japanese 
stages run throughout the city, and they are generally 
crowded with natives. They are crazy, dilapidated-look- 
ing vehicles, narrow and uncomfortable, and drawn by 
miserable, spavined, knock-kneed, vicious little ponies, each 



The Mikado's Capital, and Nikko, the Beautiful. 53 



one of whom is said to be as demoniacally possessed as the 
man who dwelt among the tombs. Out in the country, 
when the time arrives for one of these stages to start, the 
passengers all take their places, the driver gets upon the 
seat with the reins in his hands, every thing is made ready, 
and then a dozen men bring out the already harnessed po- 
nies, who are snapping, biting, and kicking, and trying to 
jump over each other at the same moment of time, an ex- 
ploit tfte absurdity and impracticability of which they nev- 
er learn by years of experiment. In a moment they are 
made fast to the vehicle and the grooms jump to one side, 
while the horses are off like the whirlwind, as wild as if they 
had just been caught and were in harness for the first time. 
When a pony balks, as sometimes happens, a bundle of 
straw is put under his tail and lighted. Then he goes. As 
we value our necks, and hope to get back to America, we 
conclude not to try Japanese staging. 

Tokio is about nine miles long and eight wide. About 
one-eighth of the area of the city is occupied by rivers, ca- 
nals, and the moats of the castle. The castle is in the center 
of the city, and the grounds occupy a vast area, surrounded 
by an earthen embankment over fifty feet high and from 
fifteen to thirty feet thick, the outside faced with stone and 
the summit planted with trees, while around the whole is a 
deep and wide moat. Within this inclosure, whose gate-ways 
and walls are of Cyclopean masonry, in the old feudal days, 
lived the Shogun in his central citadel, which was surround- 
ed by a second w T all and moat, while between the two walls 
were the castles and barracks of the daimios or feudal lords, 
and their retainers. This space is now occupied by the 
Imperial Palace and grounds, public buildings, government 
schools, and parade grounds. 

During our ride we crossed the Ninon Bashi, or Japan 
Bridge, w 7 hich is in the center of the city and is to the 



54 



Japan, the Land of the Sunrise. 



Japanese what the golden mile-stone in the forum of an- 
cient Rome was to a Roman. From it all distances through- 
out the Empire are measured. 

AVe also visited a Shintoo temple which was erected in 
honor of the heroes of the Imperial army who were killed 
in the revolution of 1868. This temple was built in that 
style of architecture peculiar to Shintooism, which was de- 
rived from the primitive hut. The rafters projecting above 
the top, the ridge-pole and cross-ties of the hut are easily 
traced in this structure. On the butts of the transverse 
beams lying upon the ridge-poles are gilt representations of 
an open chrysanthemum, the crest of the Mikado. This 
chrysanthemum is seen everywhere throughout the country, 
and is worn as a frontlet on the caps of the officers of the 
Imperial army. 

The interior of this temple, as of all Shintoo temples, was 
very plain; there was no idol, only a large mirror with a 
sword and ball, the emblems of Shintooism. On one side 
of the temple was a small inclosure with an iron fence, 
which was a kind of mausoleum, and within which was bur- 
ied the ear or tooth or finger or some other small portion 
of the body of each hero in whose memory the temple was 
erected. In front of the temple, as of all Shintoo temples 
and shrines throughout Japan, was the peculiar gate-way 
c.illed Torn, or "Birds' Rest." This was originally made 
of two upright tree-trunks, on the top of which rested a 
smoother tree with ends slightly projecting, and underneath 
this a smaller horizontal beam. On this perched the fowls 
offered up to the gods, not as food, but as chanticleers to 
give notice of day-break. In later times its meaning was 
forgotten; it was placed in front only and supposed to be a 
gate-way. Some of these Torii are very massive. I saw 
one of bronze at Nikko which was fifty feet high. 

Shintooism is a pure product of Japanese soil, though 



The Mikado's Capital, and Nikho, the Beautiful. 55 



Shintoo is a Chinese word meaning " Way of the gods." 
It has no priests, no idol worship, no distinct teaching re- 
garding a future state, little or no ritual, and no moral code. 
It seems to be a combination of the worship of nature, the 
adoration of ancestors and heroes, and the divinity of the 
Mikado. The worshipers make offerings of rice, flowers, 
and the products of the soil, and affix to the shrines long 
strips of white paper, cut in fantastic shapes, which repre- 
sent the manes of the dead to whom they pay worship. 

Tuesday, November 23d, being the day for the annual 
rice festival of the Japanese, a kind of Thanksgiving-day 
appointed by the Government, when all schools and Gov- 
ernment offices are closed, the Christians of Japan took ad- 
vantage of the opportunity and celebrated their Thanks- 
giving on the same day. We attended the service at Tokio, 
and had the pleasure of hearing addresses by Dr. Maclay, 
the veteran Methodist Episcopal missionary, Mr. Hartzell, 
of the Evangelical Association, and others. 

In the afternoon, in company with Mr. Soper, w T e visited 
the great Buddhist temple of Asakusa, dedicated to Kua- 
non, the goddess of mercy, the most popular temple in To- 
kio, and the most celebrated in Japan. It is situated in a 
park of ninety acres, and is in the center of a vast number 
of smaller temples, shrines, pagodas, flower-shows, booths, 
etc. The grounds and temples are always crowded, but, it 
being a holiday, they w T ere unusually so at the time of our 
visit. It was the most animated scene I have witnessed in 
Japan. 

The temple is approached through a stone-paved avenue, 
lined on both sides with a great variety of toy-shops and 
booths, filled with all kinds of toys, dolls, picture-books, 
sweetmeats, etc. The Japanese are very fond of their 
children, and these shops are well patronized. This ave- 
nue was a moving phantasmagoria of fantastically dressed 



5G 



Japan, the Land of the Sunrise. 



men, women, and children, and whenever we halted for a 
moment a civil but curious crowd would instantly gather 
around us. The immense wooden gate-way at the end of 
this avenue, which is the entrance to the grounds proper, 
has on either side gigantic images of the " Two Heavenly 
Kings," who are the tutelary guardians of the gate. We 
approached the temple through flocks of tame pigeons and 
crowds of worshipers and pleasure-seekers, the latter class 
evidently largely in the majority. The great hall of the 
temple is one hundred and two feet square, and is entirely 
surrounded on the interior by a wide portico. Various 
shrines, images, and votive offerings are in different por- 
tions of this room, while the main altar and chancel, occu- 
pying fully one-third of the hall, are richly adorned and 
lighted, but protected by a screen of iron wire. In front is 
the usual large contribution-box. We stood for some min- 
utes at one side of this altar and watched the throngs of 
worshipers as they stood or knelt and moved their lips in 
the " vain repetitions" of the heathen. Some appeared de- 
vout, others careless and unconcerned. But the shower of 
contributions was almost incessant. One thing was notice- 
able here, as it is everywhere else in Japan: the worship- 
ers were all either old, care-worn people, or those from the 
lower class. I have yet to see the first representative of 
either the middle or higher class bowing in a Buddhist or 
Shintoo temple. 

To the right of this large altar was a w T ooden image of 
Binzaru, the god of healing, who was one of the sixteen 
original disciples of Buddha. He had a pink and yellow 
cloth bib around his neck, and was sans nose, sans eyes. 
sans ears, these all having been rubbed off by faithful 
worshipers, who believe that by rubbing the image in what- 
ever part may in their body be causing them pain, and 
then themselves in the same place, they will obtain relief. 



The Mikado's Capital, and NihJco, the Beautiful. 57 



I have been inclined to think that this was a merely theo- 
retical deity and his worship a thing of the past, but both 
in this temple and in others I have seen many afflicted peo- 
ple, young and old, carrying out this formula. 

The ceiling and walls of this temple are handsomely dec- 
orated with representations of gods and goddesses and myth- 
ological scenes in Japanese legends. In one of the smaller 
temples we saw an albino sacred pony, which is carefully 
guarded and fed by the faithful. It is about twenty years 
old, and is a vicious-looking little beast. The payment of two 
sen each secured us admission into one of the flower-shows, 
where we saw a profusion of Japanese flowers, dwarf pines 
fantastically shaped, birds of wonderfully brilliant plum- 
age, monkeys, parrots, chickens, a splendid specimen of a 
royal Bengal tiger, and two roosters, each with a tail five 
feet in length. The Japanese are sentimental and aes- 
thetic. They love poetry and flowers, and in some depart- 
ments display great taste. 

Shiva is a vast park, which probably occupies two hundred 
acres, and in it are the great Buddhist memorial temples and 
mausoleums of six of the Shoguns, six others being buried 
at Uyeno and two at Nikko. The Shoguns were fond of 
great magnificence and display, and hence these mortuary 
temples are the most splendid to be found in Japan. Shiva 
is beautiful with tall pines and evergreens, shaded walks, 
and pleasant drives. It is a lovely resting-place for the 
dead, and is finely kept. A Buddhist priest conducted us, 
for a consideration, through two of the temples. The pan- 
els of the walls and roofs are magnificently adorned in ara- 
besques and high relief. Gilt trimmings, figures of dragons 
and gods, splendid wood-carving and most intricate lacquer- 
work make the interior a place of such splendor as is rare- 
ly seen. Each panel is a study, being a separate work of 
art. These carvings and adornments represent the labor of 



58 



Japan, the Land of the Sunrise. 



many lives, and must have cost the revenue of provinces. 
To each temple there is an outer court, an inner court, a 
shrine, and an innermost shrine. Formerly the common 
people could only come into the outer court, the lower or- 
der of daimios in the inner court, the higher daimios to the 
shrines, and the Shogun only to the innermost shrine. Is 
this not suggestive of the arrangement and regulations of 
the temple at Jerusalem? Back of all this, on an eminence 
reached by a flight of stone steps, was another elaborate 
shrine, where the living Shogun went alone to meditate and 
worship the manes of his ancestors; while still farther 
back, and crowning the whole, in a stone octagonal inclos- 
ure, was an immense urn, under which reposed the dust of the 
Shogun for whom this magnificent temple and these shrines 
were erected. This was the simple ending of all this splen- 
dor. In each of the outer courts of the temples were large 
bronze lanterns of a peculiar shape, presented by the dai- 
mios on the death of the Shogun. These lanterns are from 
six to ten feet high, and are to be seen, either of stone or 
bronze, in the courts of all Japanese temples. 

The tomb of the second Shogun ia reached through a long 
avenue of magnificent cryptomerias, along which are these 
same bronze lanterns, while overhead are cawing crows and 
screaming hawks. Here you seem to step from the modern 
world of Japan into the past centuries before foreign ideas 
had come to this land of Buddha. Every thing is primeval, 
ancient, and redolent of a by-gone age. You can hardly 
realize that you are in the heart of a city of a million in- 
habitants. Ascending a long flight of stone steps, you en- 
ter a partially paved front yard, surrounded by a heavy 
stone palisade, with camel ia-trees growing around. In this 
inclosure is an elaborate octagonal temple, of small dimen- 
sions, containing the remains of the second Shogun. The 
walls are gilt over lacquer, and the carving, paintings, and 



The Mikado's Capital, and Mkko, the Beautiful. 59 



lacquer-work are the most magnificent in Japan. Eight 
pillars covered with gilt copper plates support the high ceil- 
ing and surround the carved urn, which contains an image 
of the dead Shogun. 

We also spent a few hours at Uyeno, which is the twin 
of Shiva, and is a great park in which are three mortuary 
temples, similar to those at Shiva, where are buried the re- 
mains of six Shoguns. It was the custom to bury these de- 
ceased rulers alternately at these two places. Uyeno has 
wide avenues and fine groves of stately old trees. It is kept 
in fine order, and is a great resort for all classes of people. 
Numerous tea-booths and restaurants are scattered through 
the grounds, and no more delightful place can be found in 
which to spend a summer afternoon. Some one has said in 
writing of it, "it is very difficult to do justice to its beauty 
in words. I have the memory before me of a place green 
in winter, pleasant and cool in the hottest summer, of peace- 
ful cloisters, of the fragrance of incense, of the subdued 
chant of* rich-robed priests, and the music of bells; of ex- 
quisite} designs, harmonious coloring, and rich gilding. The 
hum of the vast city outside is unheard here. Iye-yasu 
himself, in the mountains of Is ikko, has no quieter resting- 
place than his descendants, in the heart of the city over which 
he ruled." 

At Tokio are located the head-quarters of the Japan Mis- 
sion of the Methodist Episcopal Church. We met most of 
the members of this mission, and to the kindness of Mr. 
Soper and his estimable wife, who were untiring in their 
courtesy and attention, we are indebted for much of the 
pleasure of our visit to the capital. 

A Japanese proverb says, "Thou canst not say Kikko 
until thou hast been to Nikko" — the former word meaning 
delightful or beautiful — so to Nikko we decided to go, espe- 
cially as it would afford us an opportunity of seeing some-. 



60 



Japan, the Land of the Sunrise. 



thing of Japanese life in the interior. From Tokio to Ut- 
sonomya is seventy miles by rail; from the latter place to 
Nikko is twenty-five miles, which must be traveled in jin- 
rikishas. We arrived at Utsonomya about 8 o'clock, and, 
chartering jinrikishas, rode for about a mile through a 
primitive Japanese town, to the native hotel which had 
been recommended to us. Our jinrikisha-men dashed into 
the entrance to the hotel at full speed, and we found the 
whole force assembled to receive us. When I speak of a 
Japanese hotel, to understand what I mean you must re- 
construct your ideas of a hotel derived from American mod- 
els. It looked more like a play-house than a hotel. The 
floor was elevated about two feet from the ground, and 
there were no partitions — only the usual sliding frames, and 
all these were shoved to one side, throwing the whole lower 
floor into one apartment. The floor was covered with mat- 
ting, and there was no sign of furniture in the house. With 
many salaams and courtesies and a jabber of "Ohy-o," we 
alighted, and slippers were given us either to put on or 
thrust over our shoes. The sandals or slippers must be 
shoved along by a peculiar art known only to the Japa- 
nese, and our vain efforts to keep them on excited the mirth 
of the crowd of curious attendants, and amid shouts of 
laughter we made our way through the lower apartments to 
a stair-way. Passing the public bath-room, which was im- 
mediately in front of the main entrance, and the sliding 
walls of which were all pushed opeu, one of the natives had 
just come up steaming from the hot bath and was uncon- 
cernedly standing in full view in the center of the room. 
The Japanese motto is, Hard soit qui mal y pense. 

We were conducted up a staircase whose steps shone so 
that they looked like lacquer-work, while the railings were 
large bamboos, into an apartment about thirty feet long 
and ten feet wide, which, however, was converted into 



The Mikado's Capital, and Nikko, the Beaut if id. 61 



three rooms by shoving the sliding frames. These were our 
quarters. Over the matting a Brussels carpet was spread, 
and a table in the farther room was the only article of fur- 
niture. Two square paper lanterns, about three feet high, 
and two tall, handsomely carved black wooden candle- 
sticks two feet high, gave light to the apartments. The 
rooms were finished in native wood, polished until it shone 
like ebony, without paint or varnish — for the exquisite taste 
of the Japanese will allow neither about their houses. The 
walls were the usual sliding frames, fitting in grooves and 
going to within two and a half feet of the ceiling. Above 
them was an open lattice-work, and the whole was most 
exquisitely finished and artistic to the last degree. Our 
rooms opened on a portico which faced a square court 
around which the hotel was built, through which flowed a 
little stream with little rustic bridges and miniature cas- 
cades. At night this portico was also closed by adjustable 
frames, converting it into a hall. 

We ordered dinner to be brought, and it was a pure Jap- 
anese iable-oVhote — some disreputable-looking fish, stewed 
bamboo, a thin watery compound with a few islands of some 
doughy substance, dako (a kind of turnip), one or two other 
mysterious, unsavory-looking dishes, and rice and tea ad lib- 
itum. It was an unpromising array, but we were hungry, and 
supplementing it with a lunch which, anticipating a disrelish 
of Japanese fare, we had brought with us, we managed toler- 
ably well. Then our beds were prepared, which consisted 
entirely of thick, padded " comforts." With several of these 
they made a pallet, while another rolled up served for a pil- 
low, and two more for covering. It was a primitive couch, 
for the Japanese use neither sheets nor pillows, and nothing 
could induce them to destroy the artistic simplicity of their 
houses by encumbering them with bedsteads. During the 
day these quilts are rolled together and stored out of sight. 



62 Japan, the Land of the Sunrise. 

In summer, a well-planned Japanese house is the very 
ideal of coolness, grace, and comfort. In winter it is the 
acme of misery. There are no flues, stoves, or fire-places, 
and there is unlimited ventilation from every direction. 
The people tuck their feet up under their clothes and sit on 
them, and warm their hands over a brazier which contains 
a little charcoal. It is a great wonder that they do not 
freeze, and there is undoubtedly great suffering. I can 
imagine nothing more cheerless than a Japanese house in 
winter. People go out as little as possible in cold weather, 
and fortunately it never stays very cold a great while. 

We managed to keep tolerably comfortable at the hotel 
by having a number of braziers brought in and by keeping 
our walls closed. We slept well and awakened early to be 
ready for our ride to Nikko. We breakfasted on boiled 
eggs, rice, and tea (the Japanese never use bread, and do 
not know how to make it), and at eight o'clock started on 
our twenty-five miles ride. Each of us had two men pull- 
ing " tandem," and as we dashed through the town we made 
quite a procession, attracting general attention and being 
hailed with many friendly greetings, especially from the wom- 
en and children. The air was keen and frosty, but pure and 
invigorating as it came fresh from the Nikko Mountains, 
which soon appeared in sight. After leaving Utsonomya, we 
entered a macadamized avenue of lofty cryptomerias, and 
for twenty-five miles rode in the shade of these magnificent 
trees, which rose, like fluted shafts, from one hundred to 
one hundred and fifty feet above us, their limbs often inter- 
lacing and forming an evergreen arch the beauty of which 
cannot be described. These trees were planted two hun- 
dred years ago, as an offering to the buried Shoguns, by a 
man who was too poor to place a bronze lantern at their 
shrines. They are a species of pine, the finest I have ever 
seen, averaging fifteen feet in girt, and being straight and 



The Mikado's Capital, and Nikko, the Beautiful G3 



smooth, with no limbs for thirty to forty feet from the 
ground. 

We passed all sorts of people in all kinds'of dress. Some 
lady, in writing about Japan, says that a woman is perfect- 
ly clothed if she has one garment and a girdle on, and per- 
fectly dressed if she has two garments. Most of the women 
whom we met seemed content with being clothed, though 
all of them had most elaborate coiffures, the hair-dress be- 
ing the most important part of a Japanese woman's costume 
— in which some of our American ladies imitate them. 
Most of the peasants and coolies whom we met, bearing 
immense burdens that swung on a bamboo pole, each end 
of which rested on the shoulders of two men, were in the 
usual native costume, of which we may say, as the High- 
lander said of the beggar's, "The most of them's made of 
fresh air." Then would come passengers of all sorts on 
foot, their feet on high clogs or straw sandals ; a pack-mule, 
or perhaps a train of them, shod with straw-shoes (for all 
horseshoes in this country are made of straw), bearing great 
loads of wood, or straw, or rice; a peripatetic merchant 
with his wares on his back ; a group of pilgrims or priests 
returning from Nikko ; and ocasionally a little cart, heav- 
ily loaded, drawn by a struggling pony. At frequent in- 
tervals were shrines and temples, though most of them 
looked deserted and many were in ruins. Twice we stopped 
at tea-houses to rest. Smiling Japanese maidens brought 
straw-colored tea in dainty cups, with a tiny tea-pot and 
kettle of hot water, and tasteless sweetmeats on lacquer 
trays Our "horses" filled up on rice, which they shov- 
eled into their mouths by the bowlful, washing it down 
with unlimited supplies of tea. No charge is made at these 
houses, but you are expected to leave three or four sen on 
the tea-tray. 

Near Nikko clear and sparkling streams, fresh from the 



64 



Japan, the Land of the Sunrise. 



mountains, course along both sides of the way with musical 
murmur, while just before you rise the ^sikko Zan — u Mount- 
ains of the Sun's Brightness." We found at Nikko— a strag- 
gling little village, with curio-shops, temples, and water- 
fells — an elegant native hotel, an improved edition of the one 
at Utsonomya, with some idea of how to cook foreign food ; a 
great pagoda of seven stories, within which hangs, like a colos- 
sal pendulum to steady it against earthquakes, one of the tall- 
est of tree-trunks ; mellow, deep-toned bells, whose sounds 
float down from the hills like a voice from another world ; 
wind-swept heights, crowned with great solemn forests of 
memorial pines and cedars; magnificent shrines and costly 
mausoleums ; and rushing torrents and roaring cataracts set 
in wonderful landscapes that make this the Switzerland of 
Japan. To attempt to describe all in detail would be a 
worse than useless task. 

In 1616, on the death of the greatest of the Shoguns, his 
son, obeying his dying injunction, sent two of his daimios to 
select a resting-place for the body of Iye-yasu. They select- 
ed the southern slope of a beautiful hill here at Xikko, and 
there he sleeps, looking down upon the grand group of 
temples erected in his honor. These temples are situated 
on a mountain which is reached by a broad road, a splendid 
specimen of engineering, paved and walled, which winds 
around and ascends to the broad plateau at the summit by 
easy stages. Groves and avenues of cryptomerias, with their 
rich, green foliage, stand like giants everywhere, and I do 
not wonder that Shodo-Shonin, the guardian saint of Xikko, 
thought the spot a fit dwelling-place for the gods. On a 
still higher mountain, above these temples, with their won- 
derful figures and shrines and wood carving, is the tomb 
of Iye-yasu, which is reached by ascending two hundred and 
twenty stone steps, the staircases being broken by long stone 
corridors. The vast walls, stone gallery, staircase and 



The Mikado's Capital, and Nikko, the Beautiful. G5 



balustrade are put together without mortar or cement, 
and so accurately fitted that the joints are scarcely affected 
by the damp, rain, and disintegration of nearly three hun- 
dred years. The steps are fine monoliths, and the coping 
at the side, the massive balustrade, and the heavy rail at 
the top are cut out of solid blocks of stone, ten to eighteen 
feet long. 

After several days charmingly spent in this delightful 
locality we returned to Tokio, via Utsonomya, our coolies 
making seven miles an hour on the return trip, and thence 
to Yokohama, from which place we sailed for Kobe the 
middle of the following week. 
5 



IY. 

Historic Cities and Places in Japan. 



IFTY years ago Daniel Webster said that whoever 
would see the Eastern world before it would turn into 
a Western world must make his visit soon. I have real- 
ized the force of this as I have traveled around in Japan 
and seen how rapidly this self-reformed Hermit Nation is 
assuming our Western civilization, and how fast the traces of 
primitive Japan are disappearing. Bat even more than else- 
where was I impressed with it when at Kamakura, eighteen 
miles from Yokohama, whither we went to see the famous 
Dia-Butsu, or great Buddha. In 1190 Yoritoma, the first 
Shogun, established his capital at Kamakura, and made it a 
great city. For several centuries it was one of the large 
cities of Japan, at one time having a population of six 
hundred thousand, but to-day all remains of its greatness 
have disappeared, and it was difficult for us to realize that 
the rice-fields through which we passed as we came down 
into the broad, fertile valley were once the homes of more 
than half a million people. A miserable, straggling village, 
a few temples, one or two broad avenues, and the mammoth 
imao-e of Buddha are all that remain. It was a striking il- 
lustration of how the fragile architecture of Japanese cities 
causes them to disappear without leaving a trace. Most 
of their houses are of wood, and hence fire is' the terror of 
the dweller in the cities of Japan, for sometimes almost 
an entire city has been swept away by the fire fiend and 
nothing has been left save heaps of ashes, And vet it is 
(66) 




Historic Cities and Places in Japan. 



67 



one of the most striking paradoxes of history that these 
people, who have only built cities of wood and paper, and 
temples of lacquer, have outlived the classic nations of 
Greece and Rome, with whom they were contemporary at 
their zenith, and whose half-ruined monuments are the ad- 
miration and models of the world. 

I had heard much of Dia-Butsu and read many de- 
scriptions of it, but it exceeded my expectations. It is 
one of the most impressive statues in the world, and there 
is something sublimely significant in its solitude and deso- 
lation. It is supposed to have been constructed in 1252, 
and doubtless it was once the central figure in a magnifi- 
cent temple, but the temple has disappeared without leaving 
a trace or a tradition, and for centuries the gigantic idol 
has been exposed to winter's frost and summer's heat and 
autumn's rain, but it shows no sign of disintegration or 
decay. Mr. Loomis, w 7 ho had kindly consented to be our 
guide on this excursion, stated that a collection was being 
taken to rebuild this temple on a scale of magnificence 
commensurate with the size of the image. The idol is 
made of an amalgam of copper, tin, and gold, and was 
built in sections, which were w T elded together. Mere figures 
fail to convey an impression of its gigantic size, and yet 
they assist the conception. Its height is forty-nine feet 
seven inches; circumference at largest part, ninety-seven 
feet two and one-fifth inches; length of face, eight and 
one-half feet; width of face from ear to ear, seventeen feet 
nine inches; length of eye, four feet; length of eyebrow, 
four feet two inches; length of ear, six feet and a half; 
length of nose, three feet nine inches; width of mouth, 
three feet three inches; length from knee to knee, thirty- 
five feet eight and one-third inches; and circumference of 
thumb, three feet. He is sitting in deep contemplation, 
supposed to be in the state called Nirvana, his eyes closed, 



68 



Japan, the Land of the Sunrise. 



his feet tucked under hira, his hands clasped, and the 
thumbs extended and touching each other. In the center 
of his forehead is an immense silver boss, three feet in di- 
ameter and weighing thirty pounds, while a similar one is 
on his head. His head is covered with snails, the tradi- 
tion being that when Buddha was in Nirvana, he at- 
tracted the admiration not only of men, but also of the 
lower animals, and that as he was sitting exposed to the 
sun, the snails came and crawled upon his head to pro- 
tect him from its rays. Some idea of the magnitude of 
this image may be gathered from the fact that six men 
can sit side by side upon his thumbs, that on the inside 
of the image there is a small chapel where twenty-five 
or thirty men can comfortably staud, and that there is 
a small shrine in his head which is reached by means of 
a ladder. 

Nothing in all Japan impressed me so with the decadence 
of Buddhism as this solitary image standing deserted where 
it had once been the object of adoration and worship to 
hundreds of thousands. Only twenty years ago, two Rus- 
sian officers, who came from Yokohama to see the image, 
were cut down near the spot, and it has only been thirteen 
years since the edicts forbidding Christianity to be preached 
were taken down. As late as 1829, seven persons — six 
men and an old woman — were crucified at Osaka on suspi- 
cion of beino; Christians and communicating* with foreign- 
ers. Yet here we were, a party of Christian men and min- 
isters, measuring the very interior of their greatest idol, 
while a few stray peasants watched our movements with 
apparent unconcern ! 

Just as we finished our lunch it began to rain, and the 
return trip was made through the wet and mud. Our men 
pulled up the top which every jinrikisha has, and which 
is a malodorous oiled paper hood, without side-lights or 



Historic Cities and Places in Japan. 



69 



ventilation. There was but a narrow opening in the front, 
before which a depressing panorama of the world, as it must 
have appeared at the opening of the deluge, flitted past. 
We found we could only console ourselves with Longfel- 
low's reflection that 

Into each life some rain must fall, 
Some days must be dark and dreary. 

It is difficult to conceive of a more forlorn - looking 
country than Japan in a rain-storm. But our jolly 
jinrikisha - men trotted on good-naturedly through the 
rain and slush, shouting and laughing at each other as 
they would slip and fall in the mud, and bringing us 
into Yokohama just as the gas-lights began to gleam on 
every side. 

I cannot leave Yokohama without expressing our in- 
debtedness to the kind friends we found there and our ap- 
preciation of the good work they are doing. The mis- 
sionary community is a very pleasant one, and all the 
members of it are earnest workers. On Sabbath some of 
them hold as many as six services during the day, and they 
are untiring in their labors. We had the pleasure of meet- 
ing the veteran missionary and translator, Dr. Hepburn, 
and hearing him teach the Bible-class at his Sunday-school 
in the chapel of the Congregational Church. Dr. Hepburn 
has been "in the missionary work forty-five years, twenty of 
which were spent in India and twenty-five in Japan. His 
English and Japanese lexicon is the standard throughout 
Japan. He expresses the conviction that in fifty year s 
there will not be a Buddhist or Shintoo temple in Japan 
used as such — an opinion which was concurred in by a 
number of the leading missionaries in Japan whose opin- 
ions I asked. 

We paid a very enjoyable visit to the American mission- 
school of the Woman's Missionary Society, the first Worn- 



70 



Japan, the Land of the Sunrise. 



an's Missionary Society that was ever organized. Mrs. L. 
H. Pierson, of Rochester, New York, is the principal, 
assisted by Miss Crosby, a sister of Dr. Howard Crosby. 
They have five assistant Japanese teachers and one hun- 
dred and eight pupils, of whom eighty are boarders. 
These ladies have an admirably conducted school, and 
are doing a most useful work. English is taught in the 
morning, and Japanese in the afternoon. It was a great 
pleasure to see these girls at their studies, and to hear 
them sing, as they did for us, in English, "There is a 
fountain filled with blood." And we were rejoiced to 
learn from the devoted Christian lady who is giving 
her life to the effort to lead them to Christ that many 
of them professed to have found that fountain sufficient 
to " wash all their sins away," and were leading earnest 
Christian lives. 

We also spent several delightful hours at the "Isaac 
Terris Seminary " of the Dutch Reformed Church, where 
the American teachers are Miss A. H. Ballagh, of New 
Jersey, and Misses H. L. and Lela Winn, of Alabama. 
There are about one hundred pupils at this school, and 
they have a fine building, admirably arranged. 

During our last stay in Yokohama we found a delightful 
home with Miss Britain on the " Bluff." Miss Britain was 
the first lady who went from America as a missionary to 
India, and was for many years engaged in the zenana work 
at Calcutta. 

To these ladies, to Rev. Mr. Loomis, Rev. Mr. Squires, 
of the M. E. Church, Rev. Mr. Ballagh, of the Dutch Re- 
formed Church, and other missionaries w r e are indebted for 
much of the pleasure of our visit to Yokohama. It was 
almost like leaving home again to bid them good-by, but 
other portions of Japan were to be visited and the time was 
approaching when we were due in China, and so with some- 



Historic Cities and Places in Japan. 



71 



thing of sadness we left them at their work and again 
trusted ourselves on the great deep. 

As we sailed out of the Bay of Yokohama, we witnessed 
one of those beautiful sunsets which are often described but 
seldom seen in the East. In all my travels I have never 
seen any thing to compare with that wonderful sinking of 
the sun to rest as I saw it that evening from the deck of 
the " Sagami Maru." To the north rose Fnji-Yama, sixty 
miles away, clear and distinct in its snowy surplice like a 
solemn priest before the altar of God, while away in the 
distance, on either side, stretched the gray shore-line of 
the Japan islands. The sun was a great red orb, like a 
sovereign on his throne, and no pen could describe or brush 
paint the exquisite rose-tints which blushed in the whole 
western sky. As the king of day sunk beneath the horizon, 
the clouds which had assembled to witness his departure 
broke into a thousand turrets and castles and pinnacles of 
purple and gold. In the south the new moon hung like a 
crescent over an angry, heaving sea of dark indigo, 
through whose white-capped waves our snug little ship 
plunged on, with the clouds of spray occasionally breaking 
over her deck. 

We had a tempestuous sea from Yokohama to Kobe, and 
quite a blow during the night, which delayed us twelve 
hours. This western coast of Japan is always rough and 
dangerous. Late in the afternoon of the last day out, we 
passed the place, which was pointed out to us, w 7 here the 
" Normandy," a large English vessel, was lost about a month 
ago. Her crew were all saved, but twenty-five Japanese 
deck-passengers were lost. The fact that these Japanese 
were the only ones who went down with the ship has ex- 
cited a storm of indignation throughout Japan, and very 
naturally so, for it seems a very singular circumstance. 
The captain of the vessel is now on trial before the English 



72 



Japan, the Land of the Sunrise. 



Consular court at Yokohama, and pleads in extenuation 
that the Japanese became frightened and refused to leave 
the ship, but his explanation is far from satisfactory. 

The same afternoon a Japanese junk was discovered to 
our leeward making signals of distress. Our ship was 
stopped, and a boat was lowered and sent to her. It was 
found that she had sprung a leak during the wind of the 
night before. Her crew of three men and one woman were 
much frightened, fearing that she would sink. Ropes were 
thrown to her, and the captain of our vessel proposed to 
tow her to the land near her destination and there leave 
her. But before this could be done, and after towing her 
for perhaps two hours, it was found that she was sinking, 
and another boat was hastily manned, lowered, and dis- 
patched to her. Before this life-boat could reach her she 
was half full of water, and her bow was completely sub- 
emergd. But the rescuing boat came alongside; the little 
crew threw some of their baggage inand, quickly follow- 
ing themselves, were soon on board our ship and looking 
back at their own sinking vessel, which speedily disap- 
peared beneath the waves. But they were too rejoiced over 
their rescue, and too thankful to the captain who had saved 
them, to shed one tear over their lost ship. It was a thrill- 
ing scene and strikingly illustrative of the condition of sin- 
ners and of the method which God employs for saving 
them. If all men realized their danger as fully as did 
those wrecked Japanese sailors, how easy it would be to 
save the world! And the means of rescue are infinitely 
more certain and ample than were the facilities for giving 
those men temporal succor. 

Kobe, with Hiogo, its twin city, has a population of 
about one hundred and twenty thousand, and is a place of 
considerable commercial importance, though of very little 
interest to the general traveler. Its importance is princi- 



Historic Cities and Places in Japan. 



73 



pally due to the fact that it is the sea-port for Kioto and 
Osyka, with which cities it is also connected by rail. It 
was, however, full of interest to us, as it is the head-quar- 
ters of the Japan Mission of our Church. The members of 
our mission there gave us a w r arm welcome and did all in 
their power to make our visit pleasant. It was good to be 
with Southern Methodist preachers again, and the Drs. 
Lambuth and their families and Dr. Dukes and wife seemed 
like " home folks." While they said we brought them a 
breath of home, we were sure that there was a sweet home 
atmosphere within their hospitable walls. Dr. Walter 
Lambuth and Dr. Dukes joined our party to Lake Biwa 
and Kioto, and added much to the pleasure and profit of 
the trip. 

Lake Biwa is sixty miles from Kobe, with which it is con- 
nected by railroad, and is a beautiful sheet of water, thirty- 
seven miles long and twelve miles wide. It is two hundred 
and eighty feet above the level of the sea, and has about the 
same depth. It has about the area of Lake Geneva, which 
it much resembles, set, as it is, like a gem among the mount- 
ains. It is the only fresh-water lake in Japan, and, with 
their intense love of the beautiful in nature, they are very 
proud of it. Carlyle says that descriptions of scenery were 
not common in European literature until after Goethe gave 
to the world the " Sorrows of Werther." But the Japanese 
poets described the eight beauties of Lake Biwa in their 
own books when they w y ere a hermit nation. Numerous 
small steamers ply the waters of this lake, and many villages 
and towns dot its banks. The largest town is Otsu, the ter- 
minus of the railroad, a place of thirty thousand inhabit- 
ants, enterprising and prosperous. 

We rode two miles above Otsu to see a wonderfully 
trained pine-tree, which is said to be several hundred years 
old. The tree is of immense girth, and the limbs have 



74 



Japan, the Land of the Sunrise. 



grown to a great length straight out from the tree, resting 
on stone supports at a height of from six to ten feet. The 
circumference of the space under the limbs is nearly six 
hundred feet, and many of the limbs are from ninety to one 
hundred feet long. Some of the limbs are very large, while 
one, not more than four or five inches in size, runs out like 
a vine for over one hundred feet. 

The railroad from Kobe to Kioto passes through a very 
fine agricultural country, which appeared better even than 
that in the neighborhood of Tokio. It crosses several large 
rivers on fine iron bridges, and the low lands on either side 
of the river are protected from overflow by levees, similar 
to those on the lower Mississippi. Although it was the 4th of 
December, the farmers were all out in the fields plowing 
with their oxen, planting, etc., as in the spring at home. 
Garden-farming is universal in Japan, and I doubt if it 
would be a kind or a just act to introduce labor-saving ma- 
chinery, even were it possible, as it would throw out of em- 
ployment thousands of poor people who have no other means 
of livelihood. 

Kioto, the sacred city, is beautiful for situation — the joy 
of the whole Empire of J apan. It became the Mikado's cap- 
ital A.D. 794, having been previously called Heianjo, and 
remained such until 1868. The Japanese word meaning 
capital is Miako, of which Kio or Kioto is the Chinese equiv- 
alent. Kioto stands on an elliptical plain, walled in on all 
sides by evergreen hills and mountains, like the floor of a 
huge flattened crater no longer choked with lava, but man- 
tied with flowers. Our hotel is picturesquely situated high 
up the side of one of these hills, in a charming locality, 
and is a delightful mixture of a Japanese and American 
house. It commands a view of the whole city and surround- 
ing hills, and is the favorite hostelry of Central Japan. 

This city, with a population of a quarter of a million, 



Historic Cities and Places in Japan. 



75 



abounds in temples, big bells, Buddhist monasteries, curio- 
shops, and porcelain works. The finest porcelain in the 
world is made at Kioto. We visited one of the most exten- 
sive of these establishments, and saw the entire manufactur- 
ing process, from the shaping of the kaoline, a kind of clay 
which came originally from Kaoling, China, to the last 
touches of the artist, from whose hand the article came a 
thing of beauty. All the exquisite paintings on the Japa- 
nese porcelain are done by hand, and each is a separate work 
of art. The most beautiful and elaborate ware, such as 
would give untold happiness to the heart of an American 
housekeeper, can be obtained here very cheaply, but the 
duties and cost of carriage bring the price almost up to that 
at which it can be purchased at home. 

Beautiful lacquer and bronze w r ork is also one of the lead- 
ing industries of Kioto, some of the finest specimens of 
which we found at a native blind and deaf and dumb asylum. 
This asylum is a remarkable institution, and was one of the 
most interesting places we visited in Japan. The manager 
is a Japanese, and cannot speak a word of English, but he 
has the inventive genius of an Edison, and the grace and 
courtliness of a Chesterfield. He has thirty-five blind and 
seventy deaf and dumb pupils, and has literally taught the 
dumb to speak and the blind to almost see. His blind pu- 
pils were making the most beautiful ware of all kinds out 
of paper which they covered with lacquer, w 7 hile the bronze 
and metal work was done by the deaf and dumb. He has 
many ingenious contrivances for instructing his afflicted pu- 
pils, and has himself invented many of the most approved 
appliances w r hich are to be found in blind asylums in Amer- 
ica, besides having some which are to be found nowhere 
else. 

The head-quarters of the American Board of Missions are 
located at Kioto. They have a very valuable compound of 



76 



Japan, the Land rrf ike Sunrise. 



some three acres in the heart of the city, directly opposite 
the Imperial Palace grounds, and are doing a very fine work 
in this ancient capital. I was much interested in the work 
being- done by the Doshisha Collegiate and Theological 
School, whose fine buildings occupy a large part of these 
grounds. This school was founded principally through the 
labors of Rev. Joseph Xeeshima, the President, whose his- 
tory is like a romance. When a boy, he learned through 
the study of geography that the Western nations had been 
made great by their use of the Bible. He obtained a lit- 
tle book called the "Story of the Bible," written by a mis- 
sionary in China, and read it with the deepest interest. 
Though brought up to believe in the heathen systems around 
him, he became convinced of the truth of the Christian re- 
ligion, ran away from his father's house, drifted to Shang- 
hai, and there obtained passage in a ship which took him 
eventually to America. Here he was so fortunate as to fall 
into the hands of the Hon. Alpheus Hardy, of Boston, the 
owner of the ship, who, on learning his history, adopted him 
as a member of his own family, and educated him at Am- 
herst College and the Andover Theological Seminary. Hav- 
ing completed his ten years' course of study, he was or- 
dained at Boston on the 24th of September, 1884, and at 
once began his life-work. Before leaving America, he suc- 
ceeded in raising five thousand dollars to establish a school 
similar to the one at which he had been educated. That 
school has grown into a boarding-school for girls, a com- 
plete training-school for young men, and a theological sem- 
inary. Seven of the most able missionaries in Japan are 
associated with him, and, with efficient native helpers, they 
have made the ancient city of Kioto a center of Chris- 
tian effort and influence, as it formerly was of pagan super- 
stition. 

We had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Keeshima, and hear- 



Historic Cities and Flaces in Japan. 



77 



ing him preach on Sunday afternoon, though the sermon 
was in Japanese, and of course unintelligible to us. He is a 
modest-looking, earnest man, of medium height, and about 
forty-five or fifty years of age. 

The American Board of Missions has carried its system 
of self-support farther than any other band of missionaries. 
They have thirty self-supporting churches in Japan, four of 
which are in Kioto, and these Kioto churches also support 
two out-stations. Each church pays its pastor twenty yen 
(a yen is nearly equivalent to a dollar) per month, and the 
contribution from each member averages about four dollars 
per member, which the difference in the value of money 
would make equal to about sixteen dollars in America. 
The church of which Mr. Neeshima is pastor has three hun- 
dred and seventy-one members, and is the largest Protest- 
ant Church in Japan. It not only supports its own pastor, 
but also makes large contributions to the cause of Missions. 

Before leaving Kioto, Ave visited a large Buddhist col- 
lege, which was established nine years ago by Mr. Ar- 
Kamatsu, who before inaugurating his enterprise went to 
England to study Buddhism under Max Muller, and also 
to learn the secret of the power of Christianity. He w 7 as 
not at home when we called, but a smooth-shaven monk, 
w 7 ho looked for all the world like a Jesuit priest, showed 
us through the building and over the grounds. The cen- 
ter building is a fine, classic-looking structure of brick 
and stone, modern in all its appointments, with a richly 
finished interior and a beautiful chapel. The large library 
was well stocked not only with Japanese books, but with 
many English works, and among them a Bible in English. 
Think of an English Bible in a Buddhist college! The 
dormitories were large two-story brick buildings, and the 
class-rooms, study-rooms, etc., were such as may be found 
in any similar American institution. There are one hun- 



78 



Japan, the Land •of the Sunrise. 



dred and sixty students here, preparing for the Buddhist 
priesthood, all of whom will be of the reformed school of 
Buddhism. 

This effort to educate her priests is the dying struggle of 
Buddhism in Japan. Christianity has been making such 
rapid encroachments on the ancient faith, and so many of 
the people are becoming enlightened and imbibing modern 
ideas, that they have become alarmed and are trying to 
prepare their teachers for the conflict. But the struggle 
is a vain one, and the very means they are employing 
will hasten the end. Buddhism is doomed in Japan, and 
as the people become informed they will leave it as men 
desert a sinking ship. What few worshipers we saw in the 
temples were performing their devotions in a careless, per- 
functory manner, and there w T as an utter absence of rever- 
ence in the priests, who were always glad to show us their 
most sacred places for a few pennies. At Kawachi, near 
Osaka, a Buddhist temple has been opened regularly for 
Christian worship, the Buddhist priest himself assisting to 
gather the congregation, and the Rev. Mr. Hail, a Cum- 
berland Presbyterian missionary at Osaka, told me that he 
had preached a number of times in Buddhist temples. 

From Kioto we went to Osaka, the Venice of the East. 
We found this a place of six hundred thousand inhabit- 
ants, and one of the most beautiful and interesting cities in 
Japan. Several large rivers flow through it, and it is in- 
tersected by a net-work of canals, both of which are 
spanned by innumerable handsome stone bridges. The 
rivers and canals are full of boats of all descriptions, and 
make the scene a lively and picturesque one. 

Osaka is the great commercial and manufacturing city 
of Japan, and has many very important enterprises. It 
has not, however, fulfilled expectations as a seat of foreign 
trade, as the population is not favorable to foreigners, and 



Historic Cities and Places in Japan, 



79 



all the foreign merchants have withdrawn from it except 
one. 

Here you see primitive Japan as in no other large city 
of the Empire, and there is less adoption of foreign dress 
and foreign customs than you find elsewhere. "We visited 
the castle, mint, glass-works, and other places of interest, 
being especially interested in the mint, which is the second 
largest in the w r orld, and has more improved machinery 
than any similar establishment. The buildings and 
grounds occupy forty acres, and there are six hundred 
men employed in the establishment. 

At the hotel at Osaka we met a Mr. Yokoto, an intelli- 
gent young Japanese, who had been some time in America, 
a student at Oberlin University. He invited us to a native 
union prayer-meeting at the Young Men's Christian Asso- 
ciation rooms, which we found located in a handsome 
building, the only one which has been erected by this or- 
ganization in Japan. Here we found seventy-five or a 
hundred native Christians, seated on the floor in a semi- 
circle, in a hall which would hold about twelve hundred. 
They were engaged in singing and praying, and, at the re- 
quest of the leader, I had the privilege of here addressing 
my first Japanese audience, Mr. Yokoto interpreting for 
me. I also here met Mr. Sameyama, the pastor of the 
self-supporting Congregational Church at Osaka, who was 
educated at Evanston, 111., and is one of the fathers of the 
modern Japanese Church. A native lawyer and several 
others w r hom I met here were as intelligent and cultivated 
gentlemen as you would find anywhere. 

A pleasant episode of our Osaka visit was an hour or 
two at tiffin in the hospitable home of Rev. Mr. Hail, of 
the Cumberland Presbyterian Church. The head-quarters 
of the mission of this Church is at this place, w 7 here they 
have two missionaries (male) and four ladies. Their force 



80 



Japan, the Land of the Sunrise. 



has just been increased by the arrival of Rev. Mr. Hud- 
son, which gives them now three preachers. 

On our return to Kobe, we met the famous bicycle 
rider, Stevens, who is going round the world on a bicy- 
cle. Mr. Stevens is from Turney, Clinton County, Mis- 
souri, where his parents now reside, though he has for 
several years been living in New York. He is correspond- 
ing for the Outing monthly, which pays the expenses of 
his trip. He left San Francisco April 22, 1884, and 
came via New York through England, France, Turkey, 
Asia Minor, and Persia to Afghanistan, where he was ar- 
rested and held for nineteen days. He was finally re- 
leased and taken to Herat, and thence back to the Cas- 
pian. He then came through Korassan, thence across 
the Caucasus to India, through India, Burmah, and China 
to Shanghai; thence to Japan. He has had many varied 
and interesting experiences in his long trip; has been 
mobbed, stoned, arrested, and at times half starved and 
half frozen. He has used the same bicycle since leaving 
London, and has made from fifty to one hundred miles 
per day, the last-named being the longest day's travel he 
has made. He expects to sail from Yokohama December 
30th, and if he arrives safely in New York will complete 
his long journey by the middle of January. 



The Inland &a— Schools, and Education. 



O-DAY there are no foreign lands. "Csesar could 
not drive his chariot around the borders of the 
Eoman Empire in less than one hundred days; we can 
now send a letter around the whole globe in ninety days." 
I had always thought of Siberia and Corea as the ends of 
the earth, but w T hen we reached Nagasaki we were only 
three days' journey from Siberia; and in the ship with us 
between Kobe and Nagasaki was an agent of an American 
Electric Light Company, on his way to Corea with the 
machinery and " plant " to put electric lights in the palace 
of the king of that country ! Truly the world does mcve, 
and the sleepy Oriental nations are waking up at last. 

From Kobe to Nagasaki our route lay through the In- 
land Sea of Japan, the most beautiful and enchanting sea- 
voyage in the world. This inland sea is a gleaming silver 
and azure plain, two hundred and forty miles long, thickly 
sprinkled with nearly four thousand green, conical islands, 
which, by volcanic action, have been molded into all the 
forms of beauty imaginable. These islands vary in size 
from mere rocks rising abruptly out of the water, to fertile 
isles several miles in extent. They are all of volcanic 
origin, and are part of a vast submerged mountain-chain, 
extending from the Kurile Islands far southward, and 
lying on the edge of a great depression in the sea bottom. 
Japan was never subjected to the drift period, and her 
rocks present a very interesting study to the geologist. All 
6 (81) 




82 



Japan, ilte Land of the Sunrise. 



of these islands which are of sufficient size are terraced 
and cultivated to their very summits, and on many of 
them the mountains rise to a height of several thousand 
feet. 

At each turn of the ship a fresh scene of beauty was 
disclosed, and the whole passage was a succession of de- 
lightful surprises, as an ever-changing panorama of green 
islands and narrowing straits and expanding bays and 
picturesque landscapes rolled by us. Sometimes the chan- 
nel w T as so narrow that we could easily have cast a stone 
to either shore, and then it would widen out into a beauti- 
ful bay that seemed land-locked, with a dozen little 
hamlets nestling in the valleys around us. Occasionally 
we caught a glimpse of the open sea, with other islands in 
the distant perspective that seemed so dim and hazy that 
we could not tell where the sea ended and land and cloud 
begun. 

The earth and ocean seem 
To sleep in one another's arms, and dream. 

Just before we reached Nagasaki, we passed the little 
island of Pappenburg, a mass of rocks covered with moss 
and stunted pine-trees, the Tarpeian Rock of Japan, 
where, in 1638, hundreds of Japanese Christians were 
hurled headlong from the precipice into the sea. The 
Japanese thought thus to exterminate Christianity, and for 
more than two hundred years the death penalty was in- 
flicted on any man who pronounced the name of Jesus. 
But when the French brethren of the Mission Apostolique, 
of Paris, came to Nagasaki in 1860, they found in the 
villages around them many hundreds of people who held 
the faith of their fathers of the seventeenth century. 

Nagasaki is a thrifty commercial city of about one 
hundred thousand inhabitants, and one of the cleanest 
places in Japan. It is a thoroughly quaint Japanese city, 



The Inland Sea — Schools and Education. 83 

with broad streets near the sea, and narrow, winding lanes 
as you go farther in. Each little shop along these streets 
is a museum in itself, and the inhabitants are especially 
noted for their skill in manufacturing many beautiful ob- 
jects from tortoise-shell. 

The bay and harbor at Nagasaki are the most beautiful 
in the world, with the exception of the harbor at Rio 
Janeiro. The terraced mountains inclosing it on all sides 
and forming a perfect amphitheater; the handsome villas 
and cottages clustering on the sides and crowning the sum- 
mits of the hills ; the beautiful placid waters of the bay in 
which ride the great iron-clads of all nations, with 
steamers, junks, and sanpans, and the native city nestling 
at the foot of the hills, make a combination of rare beauty 
such as will always live in my memory. 

We spent a most restful Sabbath at Nagasaki. We 
attended service in the morning at the English Church, 
which we found on a terraced height overlooking the city 
and bay. It was an ideal location for a church, and the 
very spirit of worship seemed to rest among the palms and 
camellias and evergreens in which it w 7 as embowered. The 
afternoon prayer-meeting was like an old-fashioned Meth- 
odist class-meeting. It was held in the Methodist Female 
Academy, which occupies an elevated, romantic situation, 
and is almost the first building that meets the eye on enter- 
ing the bay. As our friends, the Rev. Messrs. Davison, 
Spencer, Bishop, and others, accompanied us down to the 
boat which was to take us to our ship, and bade us good- 
by, we could scarcely realize that we had known them so 
short a time. We shall always have the most delightful 
recollections of our last day in Japan. 

Persons in America naturally feel a curiosity as to the 
cost of living in Japan, and a number of my friends asked 
me to w 7 rite something on this subject. If one could live 



84 



Japan., the Land of the Sunrise. 



as the natives do, the cost would he very little, for thousands 
of them live on a dollar and a half per month. But if I 
should speak from my own experience I would say that no 
one reared in the United States can live on the Japanese 
food. I found it an utter impossibility to eat it at all. 
They have neither bread, butter, milk, lard, nor coffee, very 
rarely have meat, nse no seasoning, drink tea without milk 
or sugar, and live almost entirely on rice, fish, and a few 
vegetables. Hence most of the articles of food used by 
foreigners must be imported from England or America, and 
are necessarily high. All kinds of fish are very cheap, and 
eggs are also plentiful and cheap. Domestics, calicoes, and 
all articles of ladies' apparel, millinery goods, etc., are very 
high — two or three times as much as at home. A lady told 
me that she had to pay fifteen dollars for an ordinary hat, and 
never less than twenty-five cents per yard for prints. Then 
books, writing-materials of all kinds, medicines, boots and 
shoes, and furniture are also from fifty to one hundred per 
cent, higher than in the United States. So that the actual cost 
of living comfortably as one would at home is from twenty- 
five to thirty-three and a third joer cent, more than with us. 
Telegrams are twenty cents per word, including the ad- 
dress and signature, both of which are always charged for, 
and daily newspapers are twenty-five cents each. You can 
get a certain class of servants very cheap, but good servants 
charge about ten dollars per month. When, in addition to 
this, it is remembered that every thing must be paid for in 
cash — and, as some lady expressed it to me, " You must al- 
most pay to breathe" — it will readily be seen how expensive 
is living in Japan. 

The Japanese believe in education, and are rapidly be- 
coming an educated people. General Grant said that the 
educational system of Japan was the best in the world. 
Their public school system is modeled after ours, having 



The Inland Sea — Schools and Education, 



85 



been inaugurated by Mr. B. G. Northrup, of Connecticut, 
about ten years ago. These public schools are found in 
every district, and there is practically a compulsory educa- 
tional law. 

We went into one of these schools, and found much to 
interest and amuse us. The children all study aloud, shout- 
ing at the top of their voices, and you can always tell when 
you are in the vicinity of a school. The din suddenly 
ceased as we entered the room, and the teacher, who was 
an ex-Samurai, or two-sworded man, politely came forward 
and invited us in. He had several of his classes to recite 
for us, and the performance was equal to a monkey-show T . 
The leader w T ould read a line, and then the whole class of 
ten or twelve would repeat it in concert in a loud, sing-song 
tone, swaying their bodies from side to side to the music of 
their voices. They used the soroban, the Japanese and 
Chinese calculating machine, and some of them w r ere very 
expert, giving the correct answer to a sum in addition al- 
most as soon as the teacher could write it on the blackboard. 
They use now very largely the Arabic numerals, and some 
of the boys were working examples in compound fractions. 
Their copy-books looked like large blotting-pads, for they 
use small brushes instead of pens, and when they have filled 
a page simply smear it over with ink and let it dry, when 
it is ready for another impression. We frequently saw 
these queer copy-books hanging out in the sun to dry. 
One little rascal in this school showed that he had the same 
spirit of mischief as our American boys ; for, instead of put- 
ting his ink-brush on his copy-book, he had made the hiero- 
glyphics on his face. The school-room was well supplied with 
rude desks and benches, and the blackboard appeared to be 
an important factor in teaching. 

We also visited the Imperial University at Tokio, which 
is a magnificent institution, with all its departments fully 



86 



Japan, the Land of the Sunrise. 



organized and equipped, and having several hundred stu- 
dents. Most of the faculty are foreigners — American, En- 
glish, Scotch, German, and French — and it will compare 
favorably, both in buildings and equipments, with any sim- 
ilar institution of the highest rank in the United States. 
We found a fine library, and on the shelves, in addition to 
Japanese and Chinese books, were such works as Fair- 
bairn's "Studies in the Philosophy of Religion, " "Modern 
Realism Explained, " " Supernatural Religion," " Bamp- 
ton Lectures," " Willman's History of Latin Christianity," 
"Dr. South's Sermons," "Hooker's Works," Balfour's 
" Defense of the Philosophy of Doubt," Max Muller's " Rig 
Veda," etc. Evidently these Japanese are students and 
thinkers, and such a university as they have here would 
be an honor to any country. I was glad to learn that Dr. 
Martin's " Evidences of Christianity " is one of the most 
useful books among the Japanese and is largely circulated. 

In this connection, the newspapers of Japan are worthy 
of mention. There are two thousand newspapers in the Em- 
pire, all the outgrowth of the last twenty-five years — more 
than Italy or Austria, or Spain and Russia combined, and 
twice as many as all Asia beside. Scholars of Europe and Ja- 
pan are making a new alphabet of Roman letters to represent 
the Japanese characters, and a Japanese-Latin lexicon has 
been made. The Japanese language is a " syllabary," some- 
thing like stenography, and has forty-seven characters. 
These signs are taken from different parts of the Chinese char- 
acters. In addition to this native language, which is the ver- 
nacular, they use the Chinese as their literary language, in 
which most of the books and newspapers are printed. So 
that, while the vernacular of the Japanese and Chinese is al- 
together different, they can communicate through the writ- 
ten language. 

A gratifying evidence of the growth of Christian senti- 



2 he Inland Sea — Schools and Education. 87 



ment among this people is the fact that by order of the 
Japanese Government all Government offices and public 
schools are closed on Sunday. May the day soon come 
when the Sabbath will be universally observed in Japan! 
for one of the most fearful things in a heathen land is the 
desecration of the Sabbath. As I have passed through the 
streets of the Japanese cities on Sunday, and seen the peo- 
ple all at work, I have thought that if some of those in the 
United States who are seeking to modify Sabbath observ- 
ance, and practically destroy the sanctity of this Christian 
institution, could thus see the wheels of toil revolving un- 
ceasingly amid the hum of the busy crowd, who know no 
day of rest, they would conclude with Christian people that 
one of the greatest boons ever given to man was the com- 
mand, " Remember the Sabbath-day to keep it holy." 

If I should judge from actual observation, I should say 
that the Japanese are a very temperate people, for I have 
seen only one drunken man in all the cities and towns 
where I have been. But the Japanese do drink a good 
deal of saki } their native drink made from rice ; though 
they do not get drunk upon the streets, nor are they guilty 
of the debauchery and dissipation that are so often wit- 
nessed in our American cities. Sahi contains about ten per 
cent, of alcohol, and one-seventh of all the rice raised in 
Japan is used in manufacturing this drink. The manufact- 
urers, like the brewers in our country, are very wealthy, 
and have magnificent establishments. This drink is stupe- 
fying, much like beer, and the natives drink it a great deal 
with their meals. Some one has said that by 4 p.m. all 
Japan is drunk, but that is an extravagant assertion. But 
these habitual drinkers get pretty well soaked by evening, 
and will sleep it off that night and begin again the next 
day. In Yokohama and Kobe they are now importing a 
great deal of American poisonous drinks, and you can al- 



88 



Japan, the Land of the Sunrise. 



ways tell when a "Jap" has been filling up on foreign 
whisky by the noise he makes. Concerning this American 
liquor the Japanese say: "A man takes a drink, then the 
drink takes a drink, and next the drink takes a man." 
What a burning outrage it is that a Christian nation should 
send such poison to heathen nations and seek to make 
drunkards of them ! English opium and American whisky 
are among the most formidable obstacles that missionaries 
have had to encounter in the East. 

As is the case in all Oriental countries, we found a good 
many beggars in Japan, though begging is forbidden by 
the Government. But the beggars are neither so urgent 
nor so imperious as in many places in the East, and are 
reported as tolerably honest. Some one tells a story of 
having seen forty or fifty cash hanging on a nail in front 
of a shop, and, upon inquiring what they were for, was told 
that they were placed there by the shop-keeper to save 
time and trouble in answering the calls of the mendicants. 
When one came along, he simply took a copper and passed 
on, never abusing the charity of the shop-keeper by taking 
two. I can testify that one is always satisfied if you pay 
him a cash, which is very modest when you remember that 
a cash is only one-tenth of a cent. 



VI. 

Mission-work, 

t YOUNG Japanese convert, a graduate of the Johns 
Hopkins University, recently said that in Japan noth- 
ing is left as it was thirty years ago " except the natural 
scenery," and "the light of Asia is fading and waning; but 
while it is at its sunset, the Light of the World is rising on 
that Island Empire." No country in the history of mis- 
sionary enterprise has yielded so rapidly to Christianity as 
has Japan, and Gracey has well said: "Japan is ripe for 
the Christian religion as no other country is on the globe; 
and it is possible that Japan may become Christian by 
royal decree in a day." The number of converts has more 
than doubled in the last four years, and in all directions 
there has been a steady and continuous advance in the prog- 
ress of the gospel, and the weakness of the forces of error. 
Such is the power of Christianity, in this country, that if 
all foreign help w T as withdrawn, the triumph of Christianity 
is assured. There are a number of wholly independent 
Church organizations, and the Church of Christ is a native 
church formed by the union of all the Presbyterian bodies 
in the Empire, except the Cumberland Presbyterian. For 
the past eighteen months the converts in Japan have aver- 
aged nearly one hundred per week, and, as some one has 
said, the reports of the missionaries from that country read 
like the bulletins of a victorious general from the field of 
battle. Modern missionary w r ork in Japan was inaugurat- 
ed by the American Presbyterian Church, the Eeformed 

(89) 



90 



Japan, the Land of the Sunrise. 



Church in America, and the American Protestant Episco- 
pal Church, all of whom entered the field in 1859. But 
there was little missionary work done until after 1871, 
when other Churches began to send representatives. The 
first Japanese church was organized in 1872, with eleven 
members; to-day there are about one hundred and eighty 
church organizations with nearly twenty thousand commu- 
nicants, and a Christian population of nearly five times 
that number. All the prominent Missionary Societies of 
Europe and America are operating in different parts of the 
country, and the openings on every hand are beyond the 
power of the representatives of these boards, with their 
present force, to occupy. Buddhist temples are being con- 
verted into Christian churches; Buddhist priests are em- 
bracing the Christian religion, and those of the priesthood 
who still cling to the old faith are being driven to work to 
escape starvation. One of the most intelligent Japanese I 
met was a converted Buddhist priest at Osaka. He had a 
fine face, a splendid physique, and a deep, rich voice. He 
was a member of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church, 
and was preparing himself to preach the gospel of Christ 
to those to whom he had so recently declared Buddhism. 
The people crowd to hear the gospel, eager to learn of this 
wondrous new faith, and the whole aspect of missionary 
work to-day in Japan is as fascinating as a romance, while 
an awful and pressing responsibility rests upon the Church. 
The field there is white unto the harvest, and " Woe unto 
them that are at ease in Zion," when God is by his provi- 
dence calling for laborers. It is stated that in one district, 
since 1873, seventy-one Buddhist temples have been aban- 
doned to secular uses, and within the last fifteen years sev- 
en hundred throughout the Empire. 

At the meeting of the American Board at Syracuse in 
1879, President Seelye moved the following deliverance: 



Mission-work. 



91 



" Never before has the gospel wrought such great and 
speedy changes as during the past seven years in Japan. 
It is not only the most remarkable chapter in the history 
of modern missions, but there is nothing in the history of 
the world to compare with it. We talk about the early 
triumphs of Christianity, but the early records of the 
Church, bright as they may be, pale in the light of what is 
taking place before our eyes at the present time. Even 
Madagascar offers nothing to compare with Japan." 

The entire Bible is now given to the people in their own 
tongue, and in 1885 there w 7 ere circulated thirty-three 
thousand nine hundred and thirty-nine leaves of the Tree 
of Life, of which six hundred and seventy-five were Bibles, 
and eleven thousand four hundred and six New Testaments, 
the whole number making twelve million six hundred and 
fifty-seven thousand seven hundred and one pages of Script- 
ure. 

The political changes that are taking place in Japan are 
portentous of still greater events in the near future. A 
few years ago the Christian calendar was adopted, and now 
Anno Domini determines all dates. The national " fifth 
day " has given way to the " one day in seven " as a day of 
rest. A little more than a year ago, by an imperial edict, 
a new order of administration was inaugurated. Up to 
that time there had been a chancellor whose approval was 
necessary for the adoption of any measure, and from whose 
decision there was no appeal. This man had never been 
abroad, and was not in sympathy with the enlightened and 
progressive policy of the government. By this recent edict, 
the chancellorship is abolished, and the Mikado now at- 
tends personally to all matters of State. A new cabinet, 
like that of European nations, has also been formed, em- 
bracing eleven departments, and at its head, as Premier, is 
Count Ito Hirobunn, who has long been recognized as a 



92 



Japan, the Land of the Sunrise. 



most able statesman and a leader in all the reforms of the 
country. Next to him in power is Count Inonye, Minister 
of Foreign Affairs, who is also a man of progressive and 
liberal ideas. 

These two leaders in " New Japan " have quite a roman- 
tic history. When Commodore Perry entered the Bay of 
Yokohama, the Japanese were overawed by his great men- 
of-war, which they termed " imprisoned volcanoes," and the 
Shogun consented to make a treaty with him. But he 
conveyed the impression to Perry that he was the real rul- 
er of Japan, and called himself " Tycoon," " Great or Su- 
preme Ruler," whereas his real title was " Shogun," " Lit- 
tle Ruler or Vice-ruler." This action gave great offense 
to the Sumerai and friends of the Mikado, who thought he 
was preparing to assume in name what he had long been 
in fact, and they began at once to prepare to overthrow the 
Shogunate and re-instate the Mikado in power. The rev- 
olution begun along the shores of the Inland Sea, where 
the adherents of the Mikado organized a camp, and it was 
these troops which fired into the foreign ships at Shimo- 
noseki, the latter action provoking a bombardment on the 
part of the English, French, and American ships, which 
resulted in the destruction of the fort and town of Shimono- 
seki. 

A short time before this, two young Japanese lads, who 
had been raised to believe, with all their people, that the 
Japanese w T ere superior to any other nation, ran away be- 
fore the mast to England to see for themselves the inferior- 
ity of foreigners. They very soon became undeceived, and 
returned to tell their countrymen the greatness of other 
countries. But they met with a very rough reception, and 
were severely whijDped for their temerity, one of them re- 
ceiving injuries the marks of which he still bears. But aft- 
er the experience at Shimonoseki these lads were in bet- 



Mission-work. 



93 



ter favor, and, espousing the cause of the Mikado, became 
prominent in the great civil war of 1868. When the Sho- 
gunate was overthrown, they were advanced to important 
places in the government, and have continued to rise ever 
since, until to-day they occupy the chief positions in the 
Empire, next to the Mikado; for these two lads have be- 
come Count Ito and Count Inonye. This history is inter- 
esting and important, as it is intimately connected with 
those providential movements which have revolutionized 
Japan. 

At the head of the Bureau of Education is Mr. Mori, 
w 7 ho is well known in America as an able scholar, and who 
seeks the highest good of his people. He too is in sym- 
pathy with Christianity, as is shown by the fact that one 
mission-school has been established by his efforts, and two 
of his sons have been for some time attending another mis- 
sion-school. 

There is no question but that Providence has directed in 
all these matters, and there is another remarkable incident 
which was clearly providential. About forty years ago an 
American, sailing-vessel, out of provisions and the crew 
down with the scurvy, descried a small island in the 
Northern Pacific toward which they sailed, hoping to find 
food and water. On landing, the island appeared to be 
uninhabited, and only a few birds w r ere flying about. But 
in searching it, they came upon seven or eight men, 
emaciated and evidently half starved, who made signs to 
them that they wished to leave the island with them. The 
captain took them on board the ship with him, and dis- 
covered by their language and appearance that they were 
Japanese fishermen w r ho had been caught out in a typhoon, 
and when their junk was wrecked had escaped to this 
island, where they had since subsisted on such fish and 
birds as they could catch. As it was imprisonment or 



94 



Japan, the Land of the Sunrise. 



death for any foreigners to land in Japan, lie took them 
with him to the Hawaiian Islands, whither he was going. 
On the way thither he found a young boy who was among 
them very seryiceable as a cabin-boy, and on reaching 
Honolulu this boy manifested a desire to remain with him 
on the ship. He accordingly kept him, and when he had 
completed his cruise took the boy with him to his home 
near Salem, Mass. When he was ready to leaye again the 
captain told the young lad that if he chose he could re- 
main with his wife and take care of the cow and garden 
and attend school. This he elected to do, and remained 
there for several years, acquiring a good English education. 
He also mastered navigation and astronomy, and when he 
was about eighteen, on the occasion of one of the captain's 
visits to his home, he expressed a desire to accompany him 
on his next voyage, to which his benefactor consented. 
After taking several voyages and learning navigation 
practically as well as theoretically, a strong desire to re- 
turn to his native land took possession of him. The 
captain went to Honolulu, searched out the seven other 
Japanese whom he had left there a number of years before, 
and found them equally anxious to return to Japan. He 
took them all on board his ship, and when about a hundred 
miles from Japan, fitted up his largest boat for them, 
rigged a sail, supplied them with a compass, food, water, 
and books on navigation, and putting John Moriatry, his 
young protege, in charge, turned them adrift, as it was as 
much as his and their heads were worth to land them at 
Japan. The young commander steered straight for his 
home, but when near land, as they feared imprisonment or 
death should they fall into the hands of the Shogun, they 
effected a landing at the Loo Choo Islands, then a part of 
Japan. The secret police soon discovered them, and infor- 
mation was conveyed to the Shogun, who commanded that 



C5 



they should all be brought to him with their boat, equip- 
ments, etc. Accordingly they were sent to Tokio, and 
after being carefully questioned were put into close confine- 
ment. Their boat, so different from any thing ever seen in 
Japan, was carefully examined, with the books, equip- 
ments, etc., and they were accused of being spies sent to 
inspect the Japanese government by the foreign govern- 
ments. Their story which they told was not believed, 
and when John Moriatry showed his book on navigation, 
the Shogun required him to make two or three exact 
copies of it, figures, logarithms, and all. He then asked 
him if he could make a boat like the one in which they 
came to Japan. Upon Moriatry telling him that he 
thought he could, provided the necessary material, tools, 
and workmen were furnished to him, these were all given 
him, and he made an exact copy of his boat. For fear 
that the Shogun would find some point of difference, he 
counted the nails in the original boat, and placed not only 
the exact number in the duplicate, but put them the same 
distance apart. It took several years for him to finish 
this work, and about the time it was concluded Commodore 
Perry arrived with his fleet off Yokohama. As soon as the 
Shogun saw these foreign boats, he recognized their re- 
semblance to John Moriatry's, and accused him of having 
brought the foreigners there. His denial went for nothing 
until he translated a newspaper which was procured from 
Perry's ships, in which there was an account of these ships 
having been built after he had left America. When the 
Shogun finally made a treaty with Perry, Moriatry acted 
as interpreter. He was afterward released, and for many 
years taught a school at Tokio, where he still resides with 
a large family. When the first Japanese embassy came to 
this country, Moriatry accompanied it as interpreter. He 
visited his old friends near Salem, but found it difficult to 



96 



Japan, the Land of the Sunrise. 



convince them of his identity, until he exhibited a large 
collection of Japanese coins which he had brought them. 
He is greatly respected by his Japanese neighbors and 
friends, and his singular history is one of the true romances 
of Japan. 

Not only is there absolute religious toleration throughout 
Japan, but Christianity is virtually recognized by the gov- 
ernment as entitled to the same protection as any other 
religion; and there are many prominent men throughout 
the Empire who openly advocate the adoption of Chris- 
tianity as a State religion, urging it as a measure of 
j^olitical economy and national advancement. The ad- 
vance party in Japan is extremely anxious that their 
country shall take its place among the great nations of the 
world, and they recognize the fact that in becoming a 
Christian nation they would take a long step in that 
direction. Hence they urge this on purely economic and 
political grounds, leaving other considerations out of the 
question. 

There are some very noticeable features in the growth of 
the Christian Church among the Japanese. The first is 
the perfect unity of spirit which exists among the members 
of the different denominations. This union of sentiment 
and work, and the burial of all differences, is very marked 
among the missionaries in Japan, and has doubtless com- 
municated itself to their converts. 

The party names and sectarian differences which seem to 
so divide the Church in other lands have no such effect 
here, and the fellowship and sympathy between Christians 
of all communions is very delightful to see. Another 
marked characteristic is the strenuous orthodoxy of the 
Japanese Christians. Teachers of erroneous, and strange 
doctrines are shunned even more than at home, and the 
Bible is the one and only rule of faith and practice. The 



Mission-work. 



97 



extensive study and circulation of the "Word of God have 
contributed largely to this purity of doctrine, and it may 
readily be seen how fortunate it is that Christianity in 
Japan has been kept thus pure. 

An interesting story is told of the first missionary money 
ever raised for Japan. Some fifty years ago an old sea 
captain, returning from China, brought his wife a singular 
basket which had come from Japan. She used it to carry 
her work to the weekly sewing society, and its curious ap- 
pearance attracted the attention of the ladies, who asked 
her where it came from. When she told them that it was 
from Japan, they inquired where Japan was. Like many 
other people at that time, she supposed Japan was a 
portion of China, and so told them. Then, said they, " It 
must be heathen; let us pray for its conversion/' which 
all agreed to do. But one suggested that it would be well 
to begin to collect money to send a missionary there when 
one could go ; and they every week brought their contribu- 
tions and put them in that very basket which had so 
excited their curiosity. This money was sent to the Amer- 
ican Board, and was the first missionary money ever raised 
for Japan. Who knows but that the prayers of those 
godly women have largely contributed to the spread of the 
gospel among the Japanese? 

There are now in Japan 324 missionaiies, of whom 249, 
or 76 per cent., came from the United States. The mission 
of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, is the latest 
comer, it having been established in 1886. 

From Tokio to Nagasaki is the main portion of the Em- 
pire in point of historical importance, wealth, and popula- 
tion. Between the thirty-third and thirty-sixth parallels of 
latitude, on a belt a little over two hundred miles wide, 
stretches from east to west the best part of Japan. With- 
in this belt lie its largest cities, richest mines, best agricult- 
7 



Japan, ihe Land of the Sunrise. 



ural lands, classic localities, and finest temples. All its 
great historic cities — Tokio, Kioto, Osaka, Yokohama, Hi- 
ogo or Kobe, Shimonoseki, and Nagasaki — lie within this 
district; all but the latter being on the main-land or the isl- 
and of Hondo, which is the fifth largest island in the 
world. 

All of the Churches which are doing mission-work in Ja- 
pan have located their head-quarters either at Yokohama 
and Tokio in the northern portion of this belt, or at Kioto 
and Osaka in the center, leaving almost entirely untouched 
a rich and productive section extending along the Inland 
Sea from Kobe to Shimonoseki, a distance of two hundred 
and forty miles, which contains a population of several mill- 
ions, and has a number of cities w T ith from thirty to fifty 
thousand inhabitants, and very many smaller towns and 
agricultural villages. This Inland Sea is one of the won- 
ders of the world, a marvel of beauty, and destined, when 
Japan has taken her place among the civilized and Chris- 
tian nations of the earth, to be the favorite Eastern resort 
of the lovers of the picturesque and the beautiful. In this 
hitherto neglected section, with great wisdom and tact, the 
projectors of the Japan Mission of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church, South, have determined to plant our Church with 
head-quarters at Kobe, the northern entrance to the Inland 
Sea. As soon as possible, they propose to establish a sta- 
tion at Shimonoseki, the southern entrance, and thus occu- 
pying the two extremes, to work from both ends toward 
the center. 

Dr. J. Wi Lambuth, the veteran Chinese missionary, dur- 
ing 1885 spent some time in Japan surveying the field, and 
became impressed with the conviction that there was work 
for our Church to do in this great Empire. He succeeded 
in convincing the Board of Missions of this fact, and in May, 
1886, an appropriation was made for the Japan Mission, and 



Mission-ivork. 



99 



Dr. J. W. Lambuth, Dr. Walter K. Lambuth, and Dr. O. 
A. Dukes were appointed to take charge of it. The mis- 
sion was formally organized by Bishop Wilson, September 
17, 1886 — which, by the way, was the thirty-first anniver- 
sary of the landing of the elder Dr. Lambuth in China — and 
Dr. W. R. Lambuth was appointed Superintendent, 

The question may be asked, Why project a Southern 
Methodist mission in Japan, when there are four Methodist 
bodies already on the ground? While it is true that there 
are four Methodist missions in Japan besides ours, they are 
very far from occupying the field; and there is abundant 
room for five Methodisms, without ever crossing each oth- 
er's path. The Methodist Episcopal Church has twenty- 
six missionaries, male and female, and one thousand 
seven hundred members; but these are all at or near Tokio, 
Yokohama, Nagaski, and Hakodati, and their stations are 
contiguous to these centers — all far removed from the re- 
gion adjoining the Inland Sea. The Methodist Protestant 
mission is at Yokohama, and both the Canadian Methodist 
Church and the Evangelical Association at Tokio. These 
last three missions have altogether only some 20 missiona- 
ries, and 576 members, with 6 stations and 11 organized 
churches. In all Japan there are not more than 20,000 
converts to Christianity, and only 324 missionaries. What 
are these in the midst of thirty-eight million heathens? In 
Tokio alone, where there is the most missionary strength, 
the combined missions of all the Churches hardly form an 
oasis in the great desert of superstition and idolatry, and 
you feel yourself overwhelmed in the presence of over a 
million heathen worshipers. So that it seems absurd, in the 
presence of such appalling facts, to talk about there being 
no room for us in Japan. I doubt not that the time will 
come when it will be wise to unite all the Methodisms of 
Japan in one native Church, but until that period arrives, 



100 



Japan, the Land of the Sunrise. 



we should, as a Church, do our part in the evangelization 
of this great Empire, and be ready for whatever providen- 
tial openings may be developed. 

Xow is the golden opportunity for evangelizing Japan. 
A wide and an effectual door has been providentially opened 
to us, and vigorous work just at this juncture is all impor- 
tant. This is the crisis of Japan's history and destiny, and 
the country should be flooded with the gospel. 

Some one has said that the true secret of success in life 
is for a man to be ready when his opportunity comes, and 
the same is true of Churches. "Will God hold us guiltless 
if we fail to enter this door and seize this opportunity? 
May it not be that Japan is the key to Asia, and that 
through Japan we may reach China? Both nations have 
the same written language, and there is a great similarity 
in their colloquial dialects. Convert Japan, and pre- 
cipitate Japanese missionaries by the thousands upon 
China, and an entering wedge would thus be found into 
that citadel of heathenism. Although missionaries have 
been in Japan only a little over twenty years, while they 
have been in China over seventy-five years, there are half 
as many Christians in Japan as in China, and missionaries 
declare that the Japanese are more ready to receive the 
gospel than the people of any other heathen nation. An- 
other point must not be overlooked — infidelity and ma- 
terialism are also at work in Japan. Darwin, Compte, 
Ingersoll, Mill, and Spencer all have their followers, and 
if Japan is not conquered for Christianity, it will be by 
some of these forms of unbelief. The old religions of 
Japan are sure to go, and the only question is as to what 
will take their place; so that there is a weighty respon- 
sibility upon the Christian Church, and the Macedonian 
cry has never been louder since Paul first heard it than it is 
now sounding from the sea-girt " Land cf the Rising Sun/' 



Mission-work. 



101 



Twenty years ago Japan was a hermit nation; to-day 
she is the advance guard of the civilization of Eastern 
Asia. In one generation she has made changes which it 
required five and seven centuries to effect in Europe. 
"Within fifteen marvelous years Japan has abolished the 
feudal system ; emancipated four-fifths of her people from 
vassalage and made them in effect proprietors of the soil ; 
disarmed a warlike nobility, which had probably six hun- 
dred thousand adherents trained to military service; es- 
tablished and equipped an army and navy on the most 
approved models ; assured the freedom of conscience ; intro- 
duced railways, steam-navigation, the press, and a general 
postal and savings system; founded universities, and or- 
dained a free system of compulsory education for the in- 
struction of a population numbering thirty-eight mill- 
ions." 

The sun-orb sings, in emulation, 

'Mid brother spheres, his ancient round ; 
His path predestined through creation 

He ends with steps of thunder sound. 
The angels from his vision splendid 

Draw power whose measure none can say; 
The lofty works uncomprehended 

Are bright as on the earliest day. 

And swift and swift beyond conceiving, 

The splendor of the world goes round; 
Day's Eden brightness still relieving 

The awful night's intense profound. 
The ocean tides in foam are breaking, 

Against the rocks deep bases hurled, 
And both, the spheric race partaking, 

Eternal, swift, are onward hurled. 



CHINA, THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. 



pW'HAT secret current of man's nature turns 



* Unto the golden East with ceaseless flow? 
Still, where the sunbeam at its fountain burns, 

The pilgrim spirit would adore and glow; 
Rapt in high thoughts, though weary, faint, and slow, 

Still doth the traveler through the deserts wind, 
Led by those old Chaldean stars, which know 
Where passed the shepherd fathers of mankind. 





— Hemans. 



(103) 



In the Celestial Empire, 



tLONG stretch of low, flat, marshy land, lashed by tur- 
bid, yellow waters, was the first view we had of Asia 
on the coast of China as we steamed up the Yang-tse-Ki- 
ang on the " SatsumaMaru " after a forty hours' tempestuous 
voyage from Nagasaki over the misty, turbulent China 
Sea. The Yang-tse-Kiang, "Child of the Ocean," is the 
main artery of China, and has but three superiors in 
length on the globe — the Nile, Mississippi, and Amazon. 
It reaches more than two thousand miles across the conti- 
nent, and empties into the China Sea some twenty or thir- 
ty miles east of Shanghai, with so wide an emboucher that 
it cannot be seen across. It flows through the most popu- 
lous river valley in the world, and some of the largest and 
most prosperous cities of China are on its banks. For a 
thousand miles from the sea it is from one to nine miles 
wide, and in some places thirty fathoms deep. It is a yel- 
low, muddy stream, much like the Mississippi below St. 
Louis, and discolors the ocean for two hundred miles out. 
Fine large steamers run up this river to Hangchow, about 
six hundred and fifty miles. 

"We soon entered the Woosing, a smaller tributary of the 
Yang-tse-Kiang, on which Shanghai is situated about twelve 
miles from its mouth. As we approached the great metropo- 
lis of China, we found the river crowded with junks, san- 
pans, steamers, and men-of-w T ar, and the scene was a lively 
and interesting one. The prow of each vessel was provided 

(105) 



106 



China, the Middle Kingdom. 



with two large eyes, without which the Chinese think it 
would be impossible for a ship to see its course. Deprived 
of these eyes, a ship is considered as unsafe as a blind man 
walkiug the streets of a strange city. The junks have 
great high poops ornamented with carvings and other fixt- 
ures, and are much more seaworthy than the Japanese ves- 
sels. 

Landing at Shanghai, we were greatly surprised to find 
a busy modern city with stately mercantile palaces, broad 
paved streets, electric lights, beautiful parks, fine water- 
works, grand hotels, handsome residences, and all the wealth 
and luxury of a Western metropolis. It is really a delight- 
ful place of residence, the most pleasant in all the East, and 
if one has the wealth he may live as luxuriously here as any- 
where in the world. 

It must be remembered, however, that Shanghai is a triple 
city — foreign, mixed, and native — and it is of the foreign 
city that I am now speaking. This consists of three con- 
cessions — English, French and American — stretching along 
the river for three miles. The English is much the more 
beautiful of the three, and has some as handsome buildings 
as are to be found in any American or European city. This 
foreign city has a population of about ten thousand, a beau- 
tiful Union Church, a large custom-house, a fine city hall, 
and other imposing public buildings, with many large and 
handsome " hongs," or stores. The mixed city is in the con- 
cession, just outside the native city, and has a Chinese pop- 
ulation of about one hundred and eighty thousand, with a 
small sprinkling of foreigners. As in all Chinese cities, this 
population is very dense. The blocks are built up solidly 
with narrow alleys about three feet wide and four hundred 
feet long between the rows of tenements. We went down 
one of these and counted the tenements, each of which was 
occupied by a family of five or six. There were twenty- 



In the Celestial Empire. 



107 



eight of these tenements and eight rows in a block, which 
made at least one thousand one hundred souls in each block. 
In the native city they are much thicker, for this mixed city 
is under efficient police regulations. The better class of 
tenement-houses built on the same general plan have, next 
to the street, high walls rising considerably above the roof, 
with a gate separating the alley from the public street. In 
the better class of private houses, where there are no tene- 
ments, this high wall surrounds the house and courts. 

One night we went -into a Chinese sleeping-house. The 
lower story was simply a narrow passage about two feet 
wide, on either side of which w r ere two tiers of bunks made 
of boards, Thirty-two could be accommodated on each side, 
and the upper story was a duplicate of the lower. Twenty- 
five cash (two and a half cents) per night were paid for this 
shelter, and double that amount if a blanket was required. 
I was told that thousands of coolies and peripatetic Chinese 
had no other home, and obtained their meals for a few cents 
a day from the street restaurants w 7 hich abound everywhere. 

Beyond this mixed city, for several miles in the country, 
along finely macadamized roads, shaded by beautiful shrub- 
bery and evergreens, stretch the suburbs, w r here many En- 
glish and French merchants have built handsome villas. 

The native city, where the Chinese swarm, has a popula- 
tion of three hundred thousand, and is surrounded by a 
wall some thirty feet high and about five miles in circum- 
ference. Around the outside of this wall flows a canal or 
moat, twenty-two feet w T ide, and there are six gates which 
give entrance into the city. The streets within are narrow 
lanes from six to eight feet wide, and the houses are low, 
wooden structures with projecting roofs. In the center of the 
streets, under the heavy flag-stone paving, and not a foot 
from the surface, flows a foul sewer which emits a continual 
and intolerable stench. All the debris and filth of the city 



108 



China, the Middle Kingdom. 



are either thrown into this drain or piled in the street, 
and give to Shanghai the distinction of being the foulest 
city in the world. In company with Dr. Allen, we made a 
tour of this native city, and found that it fully sustained its 
reputation. The " two and seventy stenches " in the streets 
of Cologne which Coleridge enumerates are outnumbered 
and overpowered by this Chinese metropolis, and the only 
wonder to me is that the entire population does not die of 
cholera and malaria in the summer. 

The people swarmed along the streets and in the houses, 
and crowds of coolies jostled each other in the thronged and 
narrow thoroughfares, as they bore heavy burdens swung 
on either end of a bamboo pole carried on their shoulders. 
Xo wheeled vehicle is allowed within the walls of this city, 
and indeed it would be impossible for one to travel along 
the streets. Every article of merchandise, and every stone 
and timber for building or other purposes, must be thus 
carried, and it is astonishing what immense burdens they 
can bear; but they stand up manfully under them, and 
shout continually as they go through the throng for those 
ahead to make way for them. I saw eight men carrying a 
great stone that weighed at least two tons, and it is no un- 
common sight to see men carrying three or four hundred 
pounds. It was just such a toiling population upon which 
our Lord looked when he said : " Come unto me all ye 
that labor and are heavy-laden, . . . for my yoke is 
easy and my burden is light." Did not this promise 
have a literal significance? It is our Christian civiliza- 
tion only which lifts these heavy burdens from the backs 
of men and blesses humanity by giving relief from grind- 
ing physical toil. 

Almost every day in the East I see some literal illustra- 
tion of the words of Scripture. The other day I saw five 
blind men groping along in single file holding on to each 



In the Celestial Empire. 



109 



other, the "blind leading the blind." Every time I have 
gone into a temple, and heard the worshipers repeating over 
and over again the same words, I was reminded of the "vain 
repetitions" of the heathen. The threshing-floors all over 
China and Japan are similar to those so often spoken of in 
the Old Testament, and almost every day I saw " two wom- 
en grinding at the mill." 

Shanghai is situated in a vast alluvial plain, and its high- 
est hill is said to be the swelling arch of a bridge over a 
canal in one of the streets. The soil of the surrounding 
country is a rich loam, and is in a high state of cultivation, 
rice and cotton being the principal crops. It was one of the 
four ports first opened by the treaty of 1842, and is the 
chief commercial city of the Chinese Empire. It is situated 
in the province of Keang-Soo, which is distinguished for the 
wealth and literary attainments of its inhabitants, and has 
a population of about forty millions. The very fact, how- 
ever, that it is the financial and literary center of the Em- 
pire makes the missionary operations within its boundaries 
more difficult, and I am not sure whether it is a matter for 
congratulation or regret that our Southern Methodist Mis- 
sion is located in this province. The universal testimony is 
that it is the most difficult population in China to deal with, 
and results will be very slow in becoming apparent. But 
when the conquest has been made, it will prove the key to 
the whole situation. And as some one had to do the work, 
I suppose it might as well have devolved on us as on any 
one else. 

Of course, the great point of interest to us at Shanghai was 
the Southern Methodist Mission, and we were not long in 
finding Dr. Allen, Prof. Bonnell, Brother Beid, and the rep- 
resentatives of the Woman's Board. They gave us such a 
welcome as only Southern Methodists can give, and from the 
first greeting until we bade good-by to Shanghai were tin- 



110 China, the Middle Kingdom. 



tiring in their kindness and attention. The Anglo-Chinese 
school, of which Dr. Allen and Prof. Bonnell have charge, 
is located in a large, fine building, with spacious grounds, 
in the American Concession, and about two miles from the 
native city. There are between thirty and forty pupils in 
attendance, and the institution is self-supporting, with the 
exception of the salaries of the teachers. Dr. Allen has 
adopted the policy of requiring all the students to pay tui- 
tion and board, which accounts, in part, for the small num- 
ber in attendance. This school is undoubtedly doing a good 
work, and we have some valuable property here which has 
cost the Board about seventy thousand dollars. 

We found Brother Reid, the newly appointed presiding 
elder of the Shanghai District, hopeful and earnest, planning 
large things, if he could only secure men and money. He 
says we must have at least ten new men for China this year, 
and of the urgent need of large re-enforcements I have no 
question. The organization of the China Mission Conference 
has placed us on a footing such as we never had in China 
before, and I believe that the time for earnest, effective 
work has come. Xo mission ever had a band of more no- 
ble, consecrated men and women than our missionaries in 
China; and whatever mistakes may have been made in the 
past, the Church may now confidently rally to their support, 
and look for large results in the near future. The fact is, 
we have only been " playing at missions," and it is time for 
us to go to work as though we meant to accomplish some- 
thing. An Annual Conference in China looks like busi- 
ness, but we should have twenty men there instead of only 
six. 

The woman's work at Shanghai is organized on a very 
promising basis. A good providence certainly called Miss 
Haygood to China, and the ladies did a wise and fortunate 
thing when they placed her in charge of their interests in 



In the Celestial Empire. 



Ill 



that great city. Nothing that I saw in China impressed me 
more favorably than the plan of work she has inaugurated 
and is successfully carrying out. Besides the Clopton board- 
ing-school, with twenty-one girls, she has twelve day-schools 
located in different parts of the city, which are in charge of 
native teachers under the direction and superintendency of 
herself and Miss Muse. The pupils in these schools now 
aggregate two hundred and seventy, and each school is vis- 
ited once a week by one of these ladies, who catechise and 
instruct the children, and thus bring them under their per- 
sonal influence. Miss Haygood kindly gave us a day dur- 
ing which we visited, in company with her, each of these 
schools, and we became very much interested in the good 
work that is being done. We found all the school-rooms 
filled with bright-looking children, the boys and girls being 
about equally divided. These girls' schools are one of the 
blessings which missionaries have brought to China, for there 
was no such thing as a girls' school in the Empire until the 
advent of missionaries, and there are only one or two now 
in existence except the mission-schools. If missions had 
done nothing more, the movement toward the education of 
the women of China might well be considered ample com- 
pensation for all the money and labor expended. 

At one of the schools we heard nine little girls, from six 
to ten years old, recite in concert a metrical catechism in Chi- 
nese. They study the catechism and Bible half the day, and 
the Chinese classics the other half. Before beginning to read 
they are required to know one thousand Chinese charac- 
ters, and the little girls whom we heard knew seven hun- 
dred of these. The Chinese language has no alphabet, but 
each word has a separate character, and as there are about 
forty thousand of these characters, eome idea of the labor 
involved in acquiring a knowledge of the language may be 
conceived. Few persons, however, ever learn more than a 



112 



China, the Middle Kingdom. 



few thousand of these characters, which are sufficient for 
all practical purposes. 

At another school, where there were twenty-two bovs, 
they were memorizing the Gospel of Mark. One little fel- 
low, only seven years old, knew the first four chapters, and 
could rattle them off as readily as children at home can 
their multiplication table. The teacher called up a class 
of nine, none of whom were over twelve years old, and had 
them repeat some of the chapters. One began at the chap- 
ter designated; then, at the bidding of the teacher, stopped, 
and another took it up where he left off; and so on until 
they had gone through nearly the entire book. These chil- 
dren have prodigious memories, which they must inherit 
from their fathers, who have been required from time imme- 
morial to memorize the Chinese classics. 

In the Clopton school Miss Haygood requires the chil- 
dren to be bound to her for a certain number of years, 
though she allows them to visit their parents during vaca- 
tion. It requires about one dollar and a quarter per month 
to feed each girl, and even this small sum gives them better 
food than they obtain at home. It is so much more cleanly 
and of so much better quality that often when they visit 
home they cannot eat the family fare. Some affecting sto- 
ries are told of the efforts of the parents, in their poverty, 
to provide the little girls with food that they can eat. One 
little girl was pointed out to us who fell sick last summer 
while at home for the want of sufficient and proper food, and 
the father almost starved the rest of the family in trying to 
provide an egg each day for the little visitor. This will 
give some idea of the deep and abject poverty of this people. 
Many thousands of them live on less than a dollar a month. 
We saw a number of women breaking rock on the street 
who, when asked as to their condition, always answered : " I 
am sorrowful unto death." 



In the Celestial Empire. 



113 



Teaching these children gives the ladies access to the 
homes of their parents ; and Miss Haygood, besides frequent- 
ly visiting them, has the mothers to meet her on stated aft- 
ernoons during the week, when she gives them Bible-read- 
ings and Christian instruction. The schools which are 
convenient to the Woman's Home are gathered in the 
church every morning and evening for prayers, and on 
Sunday all the schools, with their teachers, attend Sunday- 
school and church. I had the pleasure of seeing two hun- 
dred of them in Sunday-school and hearing them sing. 
They throw their whole soul into their songs, and are not 
afraid to open their mouths. With Chinese words, they 
were the same Sunday-school airs that the children were 
singing at home. I was inexpressibly thrilled as I looked 
upon all these little ones of heathen parentage receiving 
Christian instruction at the hands of Southern Methodism, 
and thought that they were the precursors of a mighty host 
from the land of Sinim who should sit down with us in the 
kingdom of God. I felt grateful to God that we had even 
a small part in the attempted regeneration of this vast Em- 
pire, and I prayed that we might be stirred up to larger efforts. 

After Sunday-school we remained to preaching, and 
heard Brother Parker preach to the native congregation — 
though, of course, it was a good deal worse than Greek to 
us. Trinity Church, a beautiful, well-appointed building, 
was well filled w 7 ith an orderly native congregation. At 
the close of the service two children were to be baptized, 
and Brother Eeid called on me to administer the Sacra- 
ment. It was a great pleasure to me to baptize these two 
children — one the infant son of the pastor, and the other 
the little brother of Emma Poage, a girl who is being edu- 
cated in the Clopton School by the Sunday-school at Mar- 
shall, Mo. 

Brother Parker, having learned of our arrival in China, 



114 



China, the Middle Kingdom, 



came down to Shanghai a few days after we reached there 
to accompany us to Suchow. Eleven years had made 
very great changes in our Missouri boy, and we found 
him developed into a stout, portly man, thoughtful 
and earnest, who is pronounced to be the best Chinese 
scholar in the province. I believe he is the only mis- 
sionary in the province, and one of the few in the Em- 
pire, who writes the Chinese characters, and he is consid- 
ered authority on all questions relating to Chinese history or 
language. It gave us great pleasure to discover the high 
esteem in which he is held, and it will perhaps be a sur- 
prise to some of his friends at home to learn not only of 
his Chinese scholarship, but also of his scieutiflc attain- 
ments. It was certainly a surprise to us to visit his labor- 
atory and work-shop at Suchow and discover the extent of 
his apparatus, as well as the versatility of his attainments. 
He has made something of a specialty of electricity and as- 
tronomy — has electric bells, telephones, and electric lights 
of his own manufacture throughout the compound at Su- 
chow, and has recently secured a fine telescope, the largest 
at any mission-school in China, for which he greatly needs 
an observatory. We had a continual picnic while goiug 
up to Suchow through the canals and lakes in Brother 
Parker's " house-boat." These house-boats are an institu- 
tion in China, and afford the only means of locomotion for 
any considerable distance. In the vicinity of Shanghai and 
Ning-po canals intersect the country in every direction, and 
farmers frequently have short branch canals running off to 
their houses, the farm-boats taking the place of the farm- 
cart or wagon. The canals are generally from twenty to 
fifty feet in width, though some widen out into good-sized 
rivers, and are of varying lengths. The Grand Canal, 
reaching from Hang Chow to Pekin, is nearly a thousand 
miles long, and China has four canals equal to all the rest 



In the Celestial Empire. 



115 



in the world. Some of these are five thousand years old, 
and they are the great highways of commerce in this sec- 
tion of the country. 

Brother Parker's boat was about thirty feet long and ten 
wide, with a front and aft deck and a small saloon divided 
into two compartments, and a small kitchen in front. 
In the larger room, which had bunks on either side, we 
slept, ate, and sat, while the crew, consisting of five men 
who rowed, pulled, or hoisted a sail, as wind and tide 
dictated, occupied the decks. It was an easy, Oriental 
mode of traveling, the average rate of speed being from 
three to five miles an hour ; but it was the best we could 
do, and so we made ourselves content. 

The country through w r hich we passed was flat and un- 
interesting, and all the farming was on the style of garden- 
ing. Cotton, rice, millet, wheat, and vegetables were the 
principal products, and the people seemed as dirty and in- 
dustrious as the Chinese generally are. Occasionally we 
passed a boat-load of liquid manure for the fields, which was 
any thing but fragrant ; and when, on one occasion, we gave 
some signs of our disgust, the boatmen returned the compli- 
ment by calling us " foreign robbers." Once we met about 
a dozen small fishermen's boats, and each man had with 
him, on his boat, ten or twelve cormorants. They were 
about the size of large hawks, and were sitting quietly on 
the edge of the boats. The fishermen capture great num- 
bers of fish with these cormorants, who swim under water 
in pursuit of their prey with great rapidity. They are pre- 
vented by a string or ring placed around their throats from 
swallowing the large fish. These they are trained to yield 
up to their master, who follows them in his boat and makes 
use of a long bamboo pole, with one end of which he pushes 
his boat, while he directs and controls the movements of 
the birds with the other. 



116 



China, the Middle Kingdom. 



For a number of miles beyond Shanghai, the canal was 
crowded with craft of all kinds, little and big, and some- 
times it was difficult to make our way through the throng 
of boats. Some of them were quite large and heavily laden, 
while others were so small that only two or three could ride 
in them. They were generally propelled by a scull of a 
peculiar construction, by which the strength of the boat- 
man is applied most economically and effectively. This 
scull is seldom straight, has generally a broad blade, and 
turns upon a pivot in the stern. The upper end of it is at- 
tached to the bottom of the boat by a rope, which the boat- 
man seizes with his right hand, the left beiug laid upon the 
scull-handle. 

A peculiar little boat which we frequently met is called 
the "foot-boat." It resembles a canoe, and is made to carry 
one passenger with a little baggage. A thick, bent bamboo 
matting covers the top, and while it protects the traveler 
from sun and rain, obliges him to keep a recumbent po- 
sition. The boatman, sitting in the stern, which is only 
about a foot and a half wide, and bracing his back against 
a board, propels his little craft in a very peculiar way with 
a foot-oar, and guides it with a paddle. It is so cranky that 
the passenger must be careful in moving for fear of upset- 
ting it, and if he moves much, the boatman will halloo to 
him to lie still. This may be called the dispatch boat of 
China, and makes about ten miles an hour. It carries all 
the mail between Shanghai and Suchow, and one boatman 
will sometimes ply the oar for twelve hours with very little 
intermission, changing constantly from one foot to the 
other. 

On the way up, we stopped one day at Kantziang, a place 
with a population of about twelve thousand, where Rev. Geo. 
R. Loehr is in charge of the station. Here we have a good 
church, a street chapel, a parsonage, the "Louise Home" 



In the Celestial Empire, 



117 



(the property of the Woman's Missionary Society), and a 
large girls' boarding-school, and boys' school. Miss Lochie 
Rankin has charge of the girls' school, " Pleasant College," 
which has fifty-six pupils. This is one of the brightest and 
best mission-schools which I have seen, and it was a great 
pleasure to speak a few words of encouragement to them, 
Brother Parker acting as interpreter. Missouri is educating 
four girls here, and they are all promising and interesting. 
Laura Mann is being educated by Brother Mann, of Galla- 
tin ; Rosa Lee Moore, by Mrs. L. T. Moore, of Kansas City ; 
and Mary Avis and Marcia Marvin, by the " Busy Bees," of 
St. John's Church, St. Louis. The boys' school has sixty- 
five pupils, and had been in charge of Miss Dora Rankin. It 
was her special pride, and the boys were very much attached 
to her. Miss Atkinson will soon go from Shanghai to take 
charge of this school. 

We found the Nantziang Station, and indeed the w T hole 
mission, greatly saddened by the death of Miss Dora Rankin. 
She was a brave, devoted young spirit, eminently fitted for 
her work, and full of zeal and enthusiasm. She came to 
China w 7 hen only eighteen, and had been here seven years. 
She had just returned from a visit home, and was entering 
on her work with increased earnestness when seized with 
the malady which resulted so fatally. She met death like 
the heroic young Christian she was; and almost her last 
words to her weeping friends were, " God will make it all 
right." She w r as the first missionary of our Church in China 
who fell at the post of duty, and it was a sad pleasure to 
stand beside her grave in the beautiful foreign cemetery at 
Shanghai, and note how loving hands had covered the still 
fresh earth with flowers, and planted evergreens to mark 
her resting-place. 

Not far from where Miss Dora rests is the tomb of Dr. 
Benjamin Jenkins, who was fourteen years a missionary 01 



118 China, the Middle Kingdom. 



our Church in China, but who, when he died, March 13, 
1871, had been for seven years in the consular service at 
Shanghai. This tribute is on his tomb: "He was highly 
respected by a wide circle of friends as a Christian of ear- 
nest and unassuming piety, a scholar of large and varied at- 
tainments, and a public officer faithful and zealous in the 
discharge of his duties." 

Two days before Christmas found us in Suchow, and on 
Christmas-eve we were made happy by the reception of let- 
ters from loved ones at home. I am sure that I never fully 
appreciated the value of letters before, or the force of the 
beautiful words which I afterward found engraved on the 
stone arch in front of the post-office at Hong-Kong: "As 
cold water is to a thirsty soul, so is good news from a far 
country " 



II. 

ffinese ©Yilization. 



RISTOTLE has said that man is by nature a social an- 
imal, and, he might have added, a selfish one also. 
It is Adam Smith who says that if a man in Europe were 
to go to bed with the conviction that at the hour of twelve 
on the following day the whole Empire of China would be 
swallowed up by an earthquake, it would not disturb his 
rest so much as the certainty that, at the same hour, he him- 
self would be obliged to undergo the amputation of his lit- 
tle finger. It is very difficult for us to feel as deep a per- 
sonal interest in three hundred and fifty millions of Chinese 
on the other side of the globe from us as in those who are 
our next-door neighbors, and yet "God hath made of one 
blood all the nations of the earth." Tennyson causes his 
hero in Locksley Hall to say, 

Better fifty years of Europe than a cycle of Cathay ; 
but the Christian who prays, " Thy kingdom come," sees 
no difference between Jew or Greek, bond or free, Ameri- 
can or Chinese, for Christ died alike for all. 

If the poet laureate could see a supercilious mandarin 
strutting along and looking as if he could eat all the for- 
eigners, and would do so if he did not think it would make 
him sick, he would at least conclude that it would be difficult 
to make a Chinaman agree with him. The Chinese named 
their country " The Middle Kingdom," because they sup- 
posed that it was the middle of the earth, and Thoreau ex- 
pressed the sentiment of every citizen- of the Celestial Empire 

(119) 




120 



China the Middle Kingdom. 



when he said : "As a true patriot I should be ashamed to 
think that Adam in Paradise was more favorably situated, on 
the whole, than a backwoodsman in this country/' - 

The Chinese Empire is situated on that great civilized 
belt of the globe stretching from the twentieth parallel of 
north latitude to the fifty-sixth, within which lie all the 
great nations of the earth. It embraces about one-third of 
Asia and one-tenth of the land surface of the globe, the Brit- 
ish and Eussian being the only empires in the world that ex- 
ceed it in area. It is about twelve thousand miles in cir- 
cumference, and it covers an area of five and a half million 
square miles. Its line of sea-coast on the Pacific resembles 
that of the United States on the Atlantic, not only in length 
but also in contour. It embraces about the same varieties 
of climate and production, and both countries are among the 
most fruitful, beautiful, and healthful parts of the earth. 
The Yang-tse-Kiang is as grand a stream as the Missis- 
sippi, and divides the Empire into two nearly equal parts, 
which are often designated as "north of the river" and 
" south of the river." It passes through the most populous 
valley in the world and one of the most fertile, and is fed by 
numerous tributaries having their rise in mountain -ranges 
on either side, and also in the Himalayas on the west. 

The artificial or political divisions of China resemble those 
of the United States, the eighteen provinces corresponding 
to our States. These provinces are on an average about twice 
as large as our States, and as our States are divided into 
counties, so each province has about ten divisions called 
Fu; and each Fu is again divided into about an equal 
number of Hien. Fifteen of these provinces are governed 
by viceroys and three by governors. Each province is au- 
tonomous or nearly so, and the supreme authorities are prac- 
tically independent, so long as they act in accordance with 
the minute regulations laid down for their guidance. The 



Chinese Civilization. 



121 



government of the Empire is a patriarchal despotism, and 
the principal function of the Pekin government is to see 
that the regulations are carried out by the viceroys. The 
present Emperor was chosen in 1875, after the death of the 
then reigning sovereign, Fung-che, who had no issue. His 
name is Kwang-su, or " an inheritance of glory," and he was 
not quite four years old when he was chosen to fill the vacant 
throne. 

Chinese history goes back to the twenty-fourth century 
before Christ, or to about eighteen hundred years before 
Confucius. The Chinese are very proud of the great antiq- 
uity of their nation, and claim that it is many hundreds of 
thousands of years old. They are descended from a band of 
immigrants who, early in the twenty -fourth century before 
Christ, came into what is now known as China from the 
south of the Caspian Sea, and drove out the aborigines of 
the land. 

China is the most populous country in the w r orld, the 
number of inhabitants being variously estimated at from 
350,000,000 to 500,000,000. These figures fail to convey 
to our minds an idea of the immense population, but we will 
obtain a better conception by comparison. The one nation 
of China contains nearly one-third of the whole human race. 
Its inhabitants are about equal in number to those of all 
the kingdoms of Europe and of North and South America 
combined. Any one of the more populous provinces con- 
tains a population nearly equal to that of the largest nations 
of Europe or of America. To support such a teeming popu- 
lation, which averages about three hundred to the square 
mile, every acre of tillable soil is cultivated, and nearly all 
the land is made use of to provide food for man. Every- 
where you are impressed with the fact that the country is 
overburdened with a population which swarms about you, 
and that there is on all sides a struggle for existence. 



122 



China, the Middle Kingdom, 



Next to the Caucasian, the Mongolian is, both intellectu- 
ally and physically, the best variety of the human race, 
and in these two respects the Chinese are the best portion 
of the Mongolian family. While I like the Japanese char- 
acter better, there is no doubt but that the Chinese are su- 
perior intellectually. China has been for ages the great 
center of light and civilization in Eastern Asia, and has 
given a literature and a religion to the inhabitants of Ja- 
pan, Corea, and Mantchocria. From the earliest ages they 
have been a literary people, and you may find in the libra- 
ry of the mandarins a history of China in fifty-six volumes, 
published by imperial authority; an encyclopedia in eleven 
large volumes, with a continuation in twelve volumes more, 
and a complete set of the Chinese classics in thirteen vol- 
umes, with their appropriate commentaries. Many of the 
learned class among the Chinese study themselves blind 
and prematurely gray, and it is said that there are always 
scholars to be found in the Empire w T ho can repeat from 
memory all the classics, with all the commentaries upon 
them. The imperial library, of eighty thousand volumes, 
was ancient when that of Alexandria w T as burned. 

The civil service system of China, founded on a series of 
competitive examinations, is one of the most remarkable 
and powerful organizations which the world has ever 
known. Through these competitive examinations, persons 
of any rank in life may advance to the highest positions in 
the government. There are three of these examinations 
and three degrees conferred ; the first in the Fit cities, the 
second in the provincial capitals, and the third at Pekin. 
All civil officers must be graduates of the second or third 
degree. The first degree is conferred by imperial commis- 
sioners sent from the capital for that purpose. When the 
competitors, usually numbering five or six thousand, are 
assembled in the great examination-hall, each person is 



Chinese Civilization. 



123 



assigned to his place or seat. No one is allowed to take 
in any books or helps to composition, bnt only a little food. 
Themes are then announced for two prose essays and one 
poem, and these essays must be completed before night. 
This examination is repeated at least once, and those whose 
poems and essays are adjudged the best are required to 
write from memory, with perfect accuracy, specified pas- 
sages from a Chinese book called " Sacred Edict." The 
names of the successful competitors are then announced. 

The second examination is held triennially in the pro- 
vincial capital, and is only open to those who have received 
the first degree. These assemble from all parts of the prov- 
ince to the number of eight or ten thousand, and are fre- 
quently accompanied by their servants and friends. There 
are nine thousand five hundred and thirty-seven stalls, and 
each contestant occupies a separate stall during the examina- 
ation. At the further end of the grounds are rooms where 
three thousand officials, copyists, police, and servants are ac- 
commodated. The examination-hall is an immense struct- 
ure covering several acres. Each applicant is stripped 
and searched, and placed in a brick stall about four feet 
square, with a table and seat. Pen, ink, and paper are 
furnished him, and he must prepare three prose essays and 
one poem on themes announced from the Four Books. He 
is allowed a day and a night for writing it, during which 
time he can hold no intercourse with the outside world, and 
is given only the scantiest of diet. When the compositions 
are finished they pass into the hands of the first company 
of examiners, whose business it is to see that they are free 
from glaring defects, and conform to the rules of the ex- 
amination. Then another company copies each essay care- 
fully in red ink, so that the final examiners may not dis- 
cover the authors by the handwriting. Another class of 
assistants carefully compare the copy with the original, 



124 



China, the Middle Kingdom, 



character by character, to see that there has been no error 
in transcribing. Then another company of scholars pass 
on the literary character of the compositions, and only those 
which they approve, and on which they place a round red 
mark, pass into the hands of the final judges. These last 
examiners are men of the highest literary attainments, and 
those whose manuscripts they approve receive the second 
degree. After an intermission of only one day the candi- 
dates enter the hall for a second examination, the themes 
this time being selected from different books — the Five 
Classics. A third examination follows after another day's 
intermission, miscellaneous subjects for essays being this 
time chosen. 

The long range of stalls is located on either side of an 
immense stone walk, and every thing is kept quiet and 
closely guarded by the attendant police. When the essays 
are submitted for examination, a mistake in a single char- 
acter is sufficient to cause the whole to be rejected. The 
proportion of the successful candidates to the whole num- 
ber is about one to a hundred. These successful students 
receive great applause and honor, and their names are pub- 
licly announced. 

The graduates from the provincial examinations go up 
to the national capital, where the third examination is also 
held triennially. It is similar in its details, except that 
it is still more rigid. The few who finally pass this three- 
fold ordeal become members of the highest literary class, 
and from their number all government appointments are 
made; so that China is the only country in the world 
Which really possesses a literary aristocracy, the public of- 
fices being filled only by those who can pass these severe 
competitive examinations. 

It will easilv be seen how this system gives a powerful 
stimulus to literary pursuits, and it has made China largely 



Chinese Civilization. 



125 



a nation of educated men. Persons of every class make 
an effort to send their boys to school in the hope that they 
will distinguish themselves in literary pursuits, and finally 
become members of the official class. Of those who com- 
pete at these examinations, only a small portion take even 
the first degree, although some of them continue to strive 
for it for a life-time. These unsuccessful candidates, and 
the graduates of the first and second degrees, are scattered 
throughout the Empire, and form a large literary class. 

This civil service system, which dates back for centuries, 
is not the only thing in which China can claim pre-emi- 
nence over the other nations of the world. The Chinese 
were a highly civilized people when our ancestors, the Brit- 
ons, were barbarians. She discovered gunpowder and the 
mariner's compass, invented the art of printing, and had 
schools, education, arts, letters and a civil service system 
centuries old while our forefathers were still naked savages 
living on roots and fishes. 

Buddhism was established in China thirteen years before 
Christianity crossed the iEgean Sea, and Confucius wrote 
his moral code, the finest uninspired system of ethics the 
w r orld has ever seen, half a millennium before the Christian 
era. Books were published by movable w r ooden types in 
China five hundred years before the art of printing was 
known to Europe, and, by jealously guarding the secret of 
national longevity, she has survived the wrecks of the an- 
cient and mediaeval world. She has the oldest newspaper 
in the world, a literary aristocracy accessible to the hum- 
blest peasant in the Empire, has never had either caste or 
hereditary slavery, has protected the life and property of 
her subjects under the same form of government for four 
thousand years, and has given religion, art, literature, and 
science to one-third of the human race. In the use of the 
magnetic needle, in the manufacture and use of gunpowder 



126 



China, the Middle Kingdom. 



and silk fabrics, and of chinaware and porcelain, she to-day 
takes the lead among the nations of the world. She was 
known to the Romans under the name of Serica, and her 
inhabitants were called Seres. Ptolemy and Arian, in the 
second century, both make mention of the country and peo- 
ple, and Virgil, Pliny, Tacitus, and Juvenal refer to the 
Seres in connection with the Seric garments, which seem to 
have been made of fine silk or gauze. This article of dress 
was much sought after in Eome by the wealthy and luxuri- 
ous, and is said to have been worth its weight in gold. 

Yet, notwithstanding the great antiquity of the Chinese, 
their knowledge of the science of government, by which they 
have constructed a system which has endured longer than 
any other which man has devised during the world's histo- 
ry, a system which has bound together under one common 
rule a population to which the world affords no parallel; in 
spite of their great intellectuality and the possession of 
many qualities which may well challenge our admiration, 
they are the most superstitious, the most arrogant, the most 
conservative, the dirtiest, and in many things the most ig- 
norant, people on the face of the earth. Worse than all 
else, they are the hardest people in the world to reach with 
the gospel, and are the most persistent in resisting its influ- 
ence. I am persuaded that Bishop Marvin was right in his 
belief that China is the last stronghold of heathenism ; that 
there Satan has intrenched himself for the last great con- 
flict, and that when this vast Empire is taken the conquest 
of the world for Christ will be practically complete. 

Since this chapter was written, the Emperor has issued 
a decree introducing mathematics into these examinations. 
This is a great forward movement, and Rev. A. P. Parker 
writes that it has created a great stir. As a result, many 
are now applying for admission into his school (Buffington 
Institute), to prepare themselves in mathematics, 



III. 

.Mow. 



§UCHOW is one of the oldest and most interesting cities 
of China, and possesses a special interest to Southern 
Methodists as the place where one of our most important sta- 
tions is located. The Chinese have a proverb which says : 
"Above is heaven; below are Su and Hang/' indicating 
the high esteem which they place upon the two cities, Su- 
chow and Hangchow. Suchow is over twenty-three hundred 
years old, and has at present a population variously esti- 
mated at from three hundred thousand to half a million, 
though at one time it is said to have contained over a mill- 
ion. It is about four miles long by over two wide, and is 
surrounded by a wall fifteen miles in circumference and 
thirty feet high, and with an embankment on the inside 
twenty feet w T ide at the base, while w T ide and deep moats 
are both on the inside and outside. 

This city has long been noted as the abode of wealth and 
luxury, and as one of the principal literary centers of Chi- 
na. It is also celebrated for its silk-weaving, which is here 
carried on very extensively, and employs a large portion of 
the population. It is a great improvement in cleanliness 
and general appearance over the native city of Shanghai, 
and has some really fine streets (though they are all very 
narrow), and a great number of elegant shops. 

Suchow has been the scene of many fierce struggles and 
dissensions, and has been destroyed and rebuilt a number 
of times. It was almost entirely destroyed during the great 

(127) 



128 



China, the Middle Kingdom, 



Tai Ping rebellion, and many ruins are yet to be seen all 
over the city. Great mounds of rubbish are in every direc- 
tion, a forcible reminder of the prophet's declaration that 
"The city shall become heaps." 

This Tai Ping rebellion, which began in 1850 and lasted 
fourteen years, was the most remarkable as well as the most 
disastrous civil war which China has had under the Tartar 
dynasty. The leader was Hung Sew-Tswian, who was a 
nominal Christian and an applicant for membership in the 
Baptist Church. He had gone to Canton as a candidate 
for the degree at the triennial examination, and had there 
heard Christianity preached. He became convinced of its 
truth, applied to Dr. Koberts, of the Baptist Mission, for 
membership in that Church, and went home to the Kwongsi 
Province, where he began a crusade against idolatry. He 
organized a new sect called " The Society of God-worship- 
ers," which increased so rapidly and was so iconoclastic in 
its practices that the attention of the Government was 
directed toward it and troops were sent to break it up. 
This threw the movement into one of open rebellion, and 
they successfully resisted the Imperial army, and took city 
after city and province after province until it appeared for 
some time as if they would overthrow the existing Govern- 
ment. But they lacked organization and system, and, while 
at first they had the sympathy of Christians and foreigners, 
their fanaticism and ignorance soon deprived them of this, 
and largely through the assistance of General Gordon and the 
American, Ward, the Government was finally able to over- 
throw them after they had carried on the war for fourteen 
years, and caused an immense expenditure of blood and 
treasure. 

Some of the most stirring scenes connected with this re- 
bellion were in the Kean-So Province, Hung having made 
Nankin the capital of his new kingdom. No city suffered 



Suchow. 



129 



more than Suchow, and it will probably never fully recover 
from the effects of the war. 

First among our missionary enterprises at Suchow is the 
" Buffington School," in charge of Rev. A. P. Parker, our 
Missouri missionary, who went from St. Joseph eleven years 
ago. The school-building and chapel were originally erected 
at a cost of six thousand dollars, the money being the gift 
of Mr. Buffington, of Kentucky. Two years ago, Rev. C. 
F. Reid, while on a visit to the United States, raised four 
thousand dollars, with which new and commodious build- 
ings have been erected. These will give accommodation for 
about one hundred pupils, and Mr. Parker expects to have 
at least seventy-five when he opens his next term in Febru- 
ary. He has now thirty-seven, nearly all of whom are 
boarders. The school is well equipped and organized, and 
several of the boys are preparing to preach. Mr. Parker 
has absolute control of these boys, who are bound to, him 
for six or eight years, good security being required in every 
case with the bond. No school in China has a better rec- 
ord, for several of the best native preachers and helpers 
have come from this school, and in every case where boys 
have been with him for any length of time they have be- 
come religious, their after history nearly always demonstrat- 
ing the sincerity of their conversion. 

There has been some adverse criticism of Mr. Parker's 
plan of furnishing every thing to his students, but the con- 
sensus of opinion among missionaries is in favor of this 
method as the most effective method of winning them to the 
gospel. The opinion of Dr. Blodgett, of the American 
Board, one of the oldest missionaries in China, is that the 
best native workers of whom he know r s are in the Protest- 
ant Episcopal Mission at Shanghai, all of whom were trained 
in similar schools. The Methodist Episcopal Church, the 
Presbyterians, Congregation alists, Baptists, and Episcopali- 
9 



130 



China, (he Middle Kingdom. 



ans all have these schools, and an experience of thirty years 
has demonstrated their success. Dr. John L. Nevins says: 
"The result of more than twenty years' experience with our 
boarding-schools at Ning-Po is to show that schools of this 
kind are among the cheapest and most efficient missionary 
agencies which can be employed in China." 

We found our two Missouri ladies, Miss Lou Philips and 
Dr. Mildred Philips, daughters of Eev. Preston Philips, of 
the South-west Missouri Conference, comfortably located in 
the Woman's Home at Suchow, and earnest and enthusi- 
astic in their work. Miss Philips has charge of Mrs. Park- 
er's school, now numbering some thirty-five scholars, and 
took great pleasure in exhibiting her pupils to us, and show- 
ing us through the premises. We spent some delightful 
hours with our Missouri friends here, and it is not often that 
eight Missourians are together in this far-off land, as was 
the case one evening in the parlor of these ladies. Dr. 
Mildred Philips has secured a piece of ground adjoining 
Dr. Park's Hospital, and hopes to erect her hospital next 
year. 

With all the members of the mission, we ate Christmas 
dinner in the hospitable, pleasant home of Eev. D. L. An- 
derson, presiding elder of the Suchow District. And though 
we could say with the Laureate, 

"We are within the stranger's land 

And strangely falls our Christmas-eve," 

these kind friends tried to make us forget that we were 
eight thousand miles away from home, and they at least suc- 
ceeded in making us feel that we were not among strangers. 

The Southern Methodist Compound at Suchow includes 
the Buffington school, the Ladies' Home and School build- 
ings, the residences of Brothers Parker and Anderson, a 
house for the Eev. C. K. Marshall, a parsonage for the na- 
tive pastor, a good church, the Suchow Hospital, and the 



Suchow. 



131 



residence of Dr. Park, the surgeon and Superintendent. 
These buildings are all admirably grouped in the south-east- 
ern portion of the city, near the city wall, where they are 
not closely surrounded by the Chinese, and yet sufficiently 
convenient for the purposes of their work. 

The Suchow Hospital is a very important adjunct to our 
work in this city. The value of hospital work has been in 
some degree recognized since the inception of missions, but 
its importance has been more clearly established within the 
past few years. Medical missions are a natural outgrowth 
of the spirit of Christianity, and while in one sense they 
may be called new, in their present form, yet they are as old 
as Christianity itself. In this respect, as in every other step 
of real progress, Christianity has only reverted to the orig- 
inal model. Our Saviour himself healed the sick, and it is 
declared of him that "he went about doing good." The 
whole history of early Christianity shows how deeply the 
spirit of the Master actuated his disciples. Heathenism 
never suggested the founding of a hospital. Dolliuger re- 
marks that " among the millionaires of Rome there was not 
one who founded a hospice for the poor, or a hospital for 
the sick." Julian, the Apostate, was the first to borrow 
such institutions from Christianity in order to remove from 
heathenism the reproach of selfishness. 

.The Moravians were the first who sent physicians in con- 
nection with their missions, and the first hospital opened by 
missionaries in China was that of the Medical Missionary 
Society at Canton, originally opened as an Ophthalmic 
Hospital by Dr. Peter Parker, November 4, 1835, and now 
under the superintendence of Dr. J. G. Kerr, who has had 
charge for over thirty years. Medical work was initiated 
in the China Mission of our own Church by Dr. Charles 
Taylor in 1848, and has been carried on at intervals since, 
though not systematically or regularly until 1882, when 



132 



China, the Middle Kingdom. 



Dr. W. E. Lambuth. projected the Suchow Hospital, which 
was built and opened the following year. The hospital 
embraces eight buildings, admirably planned and arranged, 
situated on a little over an acre of ground, and adjoining 
the other buildings of our mission. These buildings are 
an administrative building, containing a chapel, dispensary, 
store-room, diagnosing and reception rooms, and an office; 
three wards for patients; an operating and surgical ward; 
a kitchen and laundry, a residence for the superintendent 
of the out-door department, and a service ward. The hos- 
pital service is divided into the out-door and in-door depart- 
ments, each of which has a native superintendent. In the 
chapel connected with the hospital there is preaching every 
day at half-past twelve for the patients, which they generally 
all attend. At one o'clock the dispensary is opened, each out- 
door patient being admitted into the consulting-room by 
ticket, in the order in which the ticket has been obtained, 
for which he pays twenty-eight cash (two and one-half 
cents). After being examined and prescribed for, the j:>a- 
tient gets his prescription filled at the dispensary, paying a 
small fee for that also. During the first year, there were 
five thousand seven hundred and seventeen patients treat- 
ed; during the second year, seven thousand eight hundred 
and five ; and during the third year, seven thousand four 
hundred and ninety-one. The first two and a half years Dr. 
y?. R. Lambuth was Superintendent ; during the past eight- 
een months Dr. W. H. Park has been in charge. Special 
attention is given to religious instruction, and the claims of 
the gospel are earnestly pressed upon the patients. Many 
are thus reached, and it is a matter of very great importance 
that through these hospital services the gospel is preached 
annually to over seven thousand persons, while to the ma- 
jority of these personal appeals are also made. It also af- 
fords a means for the missionaries to become acquainted 



Suchow. 



133 



with them, and it is a most favorable method for bringing 
the work of the mission to the attention of the people. The 
missionaries often find some of these patients in the villages 
and out-stations which they visit. Dr. Park is also fre- 
quently called in to see rich patients, and thus gains a foot- 
ing for Christianity among the higher classes. They have 
the utmost confidence in foreign doctors, and believe in their 
medicines, if they do not in their doctrines. There are six 
bright young medical students who, with Brother Marshall, 
assist in the work of the hospitals. 

Most of the Chinese doctors are great charlatans and 
quacks; and, while they have very large materia medica, 
many of their medicines are composed of such things as 
cats' eyes, snakes, animals' teeth, and all kinds of roots and 
vegetable compounds. They take a deer, horns and all, 
put him into an immense mortar, and beat flesh, bones, 
hide, etc., into a mass of jelly, from which they make one 
of their favorite medicines called " whole deer pills." 

The hospital life has some very amusing scenes. Dr. 
Lambuth tells of one young man who came to him suffer- 
ing from the effects of a prescription given him by a trav- 
eling doctor for dyspepsia and constipation. The pills were 
to consist of some twenty ingredients, and he was to take 
two hundred a day for two months ! The patient had 
faithfully followed the directions, and had actually taken 
two hundred pills a day for forty-two days, and at last had 
only desisted from sheer exhaustion and absolute inability 
to swallow any more. Eight thousand four hundred pills 
literally choked up his alimentary canal, and he had not 
been able to swallow any food for a week, not doing any 
thing in fact but vomit and eject pills during that time. 
He said he could taste nothing but pills, and spit nothing 
but pills, and pass nothing but pills. When he recovered 
strength enough to talk (for he had almost collapsed) he 



134 



China, the Middle Kingdom. 



gravely told the doctor that he believed his body had turned 
into pills ! The man actually recovered. I confess the 
story sounds like a tough one, but Dr. Lambuth gives it in 
his published report of the Suchow Hospital. Brother 
Marshall told me he first found the man and carried him to 
the doctor, and Brother Parker said he saw the pills and 
tried to analyze some of them. 

Dr. Lambuth also reports the case of a woman who took 
three pounds of medicine daily for several weeks. 

An amusing story is told in the first annual report of the 
hospital, of a patient who came without a shred of bedding. 
" Why did you not bring your bed? " was asked. " I have 
none," he replied. '''What do you sleep on at night?" " I 
don't sleep at night ; I am a night watchman." " But you 
must sleep ! Where do you sleep in the day?" was the 
puzzled inquiry. " On other people's beds," he answered 
very gravely. Here this man had been at this business for 
three years, and during the whole time had not owned a 
bed or bedding, but had been benevolently employed in 
keeping his neighbors' property warm for them. 

A man came one day to the hospital at Amoy, who seemed 
to be afflicted with some loathsome skin disease. The phy- 
sicians, who had heard of such cases before, guessed at once 
what was the matter, and asked him how often he washed 
himself. The man seemed loth to answer, but being pressed 
at last answered solemnly, " I never wash! " "What!" 
said the doctor, "'do you mean to say you never wash?" 
" Barely," said he; " perhaps once in ten or twenty years." 
The man had actually lived for between forty and fifty 
years almost without washing. By all physiological and 
hygienic laws he ought to have been dead long ago, and 
yet, beyond the very abnormal condition of his skin, he 
seemed to be in fair average health. 

Besides our mission at Suchow, the Northern and South- 



Sue how. 



135 



ern Presbyterians have each a mission there, the former 
with three missionaries — Rev. Mr. Hayes, Rev. Mr. Lyons, 
and Miss A. C. Saffbrd — and the latter with two missiona- 
ries — Rev. H. M. DuBose and Dr. Davis, the latter having 
just returned from a visit to America. We are indebted to 
all these missionaries for many acts of kindness and atten- 
tion, Mr. DuBose having especially exerted himself to ren- 
der our stay at Suchow a pleasant one. In his company and 
under his guidance we spent a delightful day in seeing the 
sights of Suchow, visiting all the points of interest and at- 
tracting as much attention from the populace as a circus 
would in a Western town. But the curious crowd was 
generally a good-natured one, the children only occasion- 
ally calling us " foreign devils " and " foreign worms."' 
Mr. Palmore came in for a full share of their attention, 
his six feet two being to them a source of great wonder. 
They would stand beside him and comically measure their 
height by his, looking up at him as though they would 
ask if it was cold up where he was, while the children 
would feel of his legs to see if he was flesh and blood like 
other men. 

One of the first places visited was the City Temple, which 
is to Suchow what St. Paul's is to London, or Notre Dame 
to Paris, or St. Peter's to Rome. There has been a temple 
on this site for sixteen hundred years, and it is the great 
resort for the Buddhists of Suchow. It is situated near 
the center of the city, and the grounds surrounding it em- 
brace about two acres. It is really a group of thirteen 
temples, the center one being called " The Temple of the 
Three Pure Ones." This is a barn-like structure, three 
stories high, and containing two hundred idols. There is 
little that is interesting or attractive about it, and in fact 
we have found all the temples in China very inferior in ap- 
pearance and adornment to the Japanese temples. They 



136 



China, the Middle Kingdom. 



are none of them handsome, but are heavy, cumbrous edi- 
fices, with mold, dirt, and smoke everywhere. 

The great pagoda, which we ascended, is nine stories high 
and the largest in China, if not in the world. It is three 
hundred feet in circumference at the base, and two hundred 
and fifty feet high. It is octagonal in form and built of 
brick, having a narrow veranda with banisters around each 
story, to which access is had by doors. There is an outer 
and an inner wall, between which is the passage-way lead- 
ing to the top by means of eighteen flights of stairs. On 
each story there are a number of niches, in which are idols 
to whom incense is continually being offered and worship 
paid, while at each octagonal corner of the roof of each 
story on the outside is also an idol, so that altogether there 
are about two hundred idols in the building. This pagoda 
is about seven hundred years old, and is a stupendous piece 
of architecture. We ascended to the top, from which we 
had a magnificent view of the city and surrounding coun- 
try spread out like a map before us. At our feet lay the 
great city, with its broad expanse of flat roofs and the nar- 
row lanes of streets between them, along which thronged 
the busy multitude. Stretching out from each gate were 
the various suburbs, said to contain a po23ulation of one 
hundred thousand. A vast, populous plain lay all around 
the city, beyond which rose high hills and mountains, and 
still farther in the distance could be seen the gleaming wa- 
ters of the Great Lake, thirty miles distant, A chain of 
lakes and canals stretched toward Shanghai, which were 
dotted with the white sails of fishing-boats, while on every 
side rose pagodas and temples dedicated to the gods of hea- 
thenism. "Within our range of vision, which extended for thir- 
ty miles in every direction, were the homes of five millions of 
people dwelling in five walled cities, one hundred market 
towns, and from two thousand to twenty-five hundred ham- 



SucJiow. 



137 



lets. We were looking upon the most populous plain in all 
the world, and could see the homes of more people than can 
be seen from any other one point of observation. The pict- 
ure was indelibly photographed upon our memories, and 
with it came the startling thought that all those millions 
were idolaters and heathen. There are only six male mis- 
sionaries working in all that sur.ging mass of people, and 
yet we sometimes hear it said that the missionaries in China 
are crowding each other. Imagine one preacher in St. 
Louis, or four in Missouri, or one hundred in the United 
States, and you will have some idea of the " crowded " con- 
dition of the missionaries in China. 

On the summit of this pagoda, looking out upon this vast 
heathen population, we sung a Christian hymn, and had a 
little prayer-meeting. So that we have taken part in Chris- 
tian worship in the greatest pagoda in China. 

The origin of pagodas is unknown, but they are from 
Buddhism. One writer states that they are founded on the 
Indian tradition, that when Buddha died his body was di- 
vided into eight parts, which were inclosed in as many dif- 
ferent urns to be deposited in towers of eight floors. But 
all pagodas have not eight floors, neither are they of uni- 
form shape. Some are round, some square, some hexagonal 
or octagonal, and they are built of wood, brick, or partly 
of earthenware. Sometimes pagodas are reared as monu- 
ments over the graves of noted Buddhist priests, and more 
frequently as store-houses for relics. Occasionally they are 
built to correct the Fung Shuey, or "good luck," of a local- 
ity, as w r as the "ink pagoda" of Suchow. The Chinese 
also consider them as a highly ornamental feature of the 
landscape. 

Suchow is one of the most idolatrous cities in the world, 
and if Paul could visit it he would feel his spirit stirred 
within him even more than when at Athens. There are 



138 



China, the Middle Kingdom. 



about two thousand temples in and around the city, and 
about thirty thousand people who make their living by 
serving in the temples, and by the manufacture and sale of 
articles for idolatrous purposes. Shop after shop contains 
nothing but incense sticks, idol paper money, candle-hold- 
ers, pictures of idols, gongs, bells, etc. Many of the tem- 
ples are supported chiefly by the contributions of women, 
who are the most devoted worshipers. There are fifty Bud- 
dhist nunneries in Suchow, averaging six or eight nuns to a 
house. These are maintained by wealthy women, whom the 
nuns have persuaded will purchase great merit by support- 
ing them. Individuals buy an interest in the private prayers 
of these nuns at a price ranging from a few cash to several 
dollars, according to the wealth and liberality of the wom- 
en soliciting them. 

On Sunday, both Mr. Palmore and myself were pressed 
into service, and, besides preaching, assisted Mr. DuBose in 
dedicating a new chapel which he had just finished. It was 
quite an interesting service, and the chapel was thronged 
with a mixed Chinese audience, whom we tried to address, 
Mr. DuBose acting as interpreter. 

I have been somewhat lengthy in my description of Su- 
chow, so that the Church may have a clearer idea of the 
great city in which one of our most important missions is 
located. The world does not contain a grander or more in- 
viting field for Christian work. " The harvest truly is plen- 
teous, but the laborers are few. Pray ye therefore the Lord 
of the harvest that he will send forth more laborers into 
his vineyard." 



IV. 

Hong Kong and Canton. 



UR last evening* at Shanghai was a very delightful one. 
Dr. and Mrs. Allen invited all the mission to meet us 
at dinner, and we discussed China, methods of mission- 
work, our own mission, and Church matters generally until 
the time came to say good-hy. We had become much at- 
tached to these good friends who had shown us so much 
kindness, and as we parted from them, possibly never to 
meet again in this world, Bishop Wilson's injunction to them 
to "stay on the field and die in the name of Jesus," rung 
in my ears. I believe this to be the spirit which animates 
them ; and, though they are now " sowing with tears/' doubt- 
less they shall "come again with rejoicing, bringing their 
sheaves with them." 

We had previously met a number of the Shanghai mis- 
sionaries at the monthly Conference, which we attended 
with Prof. Bonnell, and several of these called on us at the 
hotel, and showed us other courtesies. Among those whom 
w r e met were Rev. A. J. Bamford, pastor of the Union 
Church at Shanghai; Rev. Dr. Farnham, of the Presbyte- 
rian Mission Press; Rev. Dr. Gulick, superintendent of the 
American Bible Society; Rev. William Muirhead, of the 
London Mission, one of the oldest missionaries in China; 
Rev. Dr. Williamson, of the Scotch Presbyterian Church, 
and Rev. Dr. Yates, of the Baptist Mission. We also met 
at this same Conference Mrs. Leavitt, of the Woman's 
Christian Temperance Union, who left San Francisco, No- 

(139) 




140 



China, the Middle Kingdom. 



vernber 15, 1884, and is making a circuit of the world, es- 
tablishing everywhere branches of an international associa- 
tion. 

One afternoon while at Shanghai, I accompanied Brother 
Reid to his street chapel where he preaches, when at home, 
every afternoon at four o'clock. The chapel is a rented 
room, about twenty by thirty feet, on a crowded street in 
the Chinese quarter of the city, and is fitted up with a small 
pulpit and seats. Connected with it is a house for the na- 
tive pastor, who has services every night. Brother Beid 
threw open the doors, which were immediately on the street, 
and began to sing, and in a few moments a mongrel crowd 
had collected. A number of women, a man with a travel- 
ing restaurant, several coolies, ten or fifteen children, some 
mothers with their babies, two or three men of the better 
class, and a peripatetic barber or two made up the audi- 
ence. The hymn finished, Brother Reid began to preach. 
The audience was a migratory one, and changed every few 
minutes. As Sam Jones would say, each one would leave 
as soon as he got his little bucket full. Some would appear 
interested for a little while, but directly they would get up 
and leave, and others would take their places. But in all 
this kind of work seed-sowing is going on, and some of the 
best converts are first reached through these street chapel 
services. 

Sometimes, however, those who appear interested under- 
stand little of what is being said. Brother Reid says that 
one day, while preaching, he noticed a man who seemed es- 
pecially interested, and paid marked attention, apparently, 
to what was being said. Thinking that here was an oppor- 
tunity of reaching an earnest soul, he directed all his atten- 
tion to him, and was considerably nonplused when, at the 
end of about fifteen minutes, the man turned to his neigh- 
bor and said in an audible tone, "He's drunk." 



Hong Kong and Canton. 



141 



At twelve o'clock Wednesday night we bade farewell to 
Shanghai, and embarked on the Peninsula and Oriental 
steamer "Surat" for Hong Kong, which we reached, after 
a pleasant voyage, on Saturday afternoon. 

Hong Kong is, as its name signifies, a "good harbor." 
The large harbor is almost land-locked, and here always lie 
anchored a large number of steamers from all parts of the 
world. It is claimed that Hong Kong is the fourth largest 
tonnage port in the world, and it is a place of very exten- 
sive commercial interests. It is the terminus of some of the 
longest lines of steamers afloat, viz. : the Peninsula and Ori- 
ental Steam-ship Company from Southampton, England ; the 
Messageries Maritimes from Marseilles, France; the Holt 
Line from Liverpool, and the Pacific Mail Steam-ship Com- 
pany from San Francisco. It is also the objective point for 
a large number of coasting vessels, Chinese boats, sailing-ves- 
sels, Canton steamers, etc., and is a sort of posting station 
for the whole Eastern world, ships without cargoes and 
ships without orders coming here to await orders from 
their owners. Ships are leaving almost every day for all 
parts of the world, and the harbor is at all times a lively 
and interesting scene. 

Hong Kong is a bold, rocky island, rising abruptly from 
the sea, and is chiefly composed of gray granite, affording 
excellent building material. The island is about forty 
miles in circumference, with hardly a level spot on it, and 
is dotted over with residences, some of which crown the 
highest peaks. It is the most easterly possession of Great 
Britain, having been ceded to that country by the Chinese 
after the opium war of 1842. It is well fortified and garri- 
soned, and is a fine strategic point for the English power, 
being not more than a mile from the main-land. 

The city of Hong Kong is built on a succession of rocky 
terraces, reaching nearly a third of the way up to Victoria 



142 



China, the Middle Kingdom. 



Peak, which attains an elevation of seventeen hundred feet. 
Many charming residences occupy these terraces, and high 
up on the side of the peak are the beautiful Government 
Gardens, which present a gay and brilliant picture on a fine 
afternoon when the military band is playing and the walks 
are filled with promenaders. 

The city has a population of about three hundred and 
sixty thousand, three hundred thousand of whom are Chi- 
nese. The other sixty thousand form the most composite 
population I have ever seen, and indicated what was aft- 
erward confirmed by the testimony of well-informed citi- 
zens, that the place is a modern Sodom and abounds in all 
species of vice and corruption. We attended service on 
Sunday at the Union Church, and out of a large congre- 
gation only about twenty remained to communion, three 
of whom were strangers. A magnificent view was obtained 
from the summit of Victoria Peak, which was ascended in 
sedan chairs, each chair being borne by four coolies. The 
view of the town below, of the harbor w T ith its shipping 
looking like miniature craft, of the surrounding waters and 
islands, and of the open ocean stretching toward our dis- 
tant home, amply repaid us for the trip. 

Canton, on the Canton River, ninety miles from Hong 
Kong, is reached by large American steamers which re- 
minded us much of the lower Mississippi steamers, though 
not nearly so elegant. The third city in the world in size, 
it is the strangest of all strange cities, and has more unusual 
sights, sounds, and people to the square yard than are to be 
found elsewhere on the globe. As I think of my day in 
Canton now, it seems to me like a visit into wonderland, 
for it is certainly the most wonderful and bewildering old 
city under the sun. It is the most densely populated city 
in the world, as China is the most densely populated coun- 
try, and is estimated to contain about two million inhabit- 



Hong Kong and Canton. 143 



ants. Standing in the center of Canton, within a radius of 
twelve miles there are at least three millions of people. It 
is a city within a city, the wall around the old city having 
been built in the eleventh century. It became a port of 
commerce in the eighth and ninth centuries, and was visited 
by Arab voyagers in the tenth century. For a long time 
it was all that the outside world knew of China, and I can 
remember how strange and mysterious seemed the mention 
of it in the old geographies. In 1684 the East India Com- 
pany established itself in the city, and had the monopoly of 
foreign trade until 1834. In 1842 it became an open port, 
and is considered the wealthiest city in China. In the 
wholesale quarter there are many splendid hongs, which 
will equal any similar establishments in any quarter of the 
globe. 

Immediately after landing we went to the " Shameen," 
to find the American Consul, Mr. Charles Seymour. Sha- 
meen, which means " Sand-face" — " Devil's Bank " is the 
popular and significant name which the Chinese have given 
it — was formerly a sand-bank, but by means of a stone wall 
which has been placed all around it, and by trees, and shrub- 
bery, it has been made one of the most beautiful places in 
China. All the foreign residents, except the missionaries, 
have their homes here, and there are many large and ele- 
gant houses on the island. The streets are very broad and 
shaded by magnificent banyan-trees, and it was difficult to 
realize when there that we were in an immense Chinese 
city. 

We found Mr. Seymour a very courteous and obliging 
gentleman, who did all in his power, while we were in Can- 
ton, to have us see the city. He accompanied us to all the 
points of interest, and his long residence and thorough fa- 
miliarity with the city made him an invaluable guide. He 
was appointed Consul by President Arthur, and during the 



144 



China, the Middle Kingdom. 



riots of 1883, when a large part of the Shameen was de- 
stroyed and most of the foreign residents were driven from 
the city, he was the only foreigner who could appear upon 
the streets, being universally known and respected by the 
Chinese. 

For his services at that time, as well as for his general 
efficiency as a public officer, he was so highly esteemed that 
when President Cleveland was elected, the missionaries in 
Canton got up a petition for his retention, which was signed 
by every American resident, and hence he is one of the few 
Republican officials who have been retained by a Demo- 
cratic administration. 

To attempt a detailed description of Canton would be to 
try to describe the indescribable. Imagine a city of two 
million busy people — a human bee-hive, with not a street 
more than eight feet wide; not a wheeled vehicle in it; 
very few houses more than a story and a half in height, 
with the eaves projecting a quarter or a third of the way 
across the street, and the remaining space in the middle 
often loosely covered over with boards, placed crosswise, 
entirely excluding the sun and much of the light; and with 
a surging mass of people pouring along the narrow, smooth- 
ly paved streets, and you have some idea of Canton. Then 
take out all the fronts of the shops, so that each square is 
an unbroken succession of wide door-ways, fill them with 
queer-looking men and queerer women; put gilt images and 
magnificent gilt shrines, visible from the street, in the back- 
ground of every shop, and place all the strange articles of 
which you can conceive upon the shelves and counters, and 
you have some slight picture in your mind of what we 
would call their stores. Some of these shops are very ele- 
gant, and present a beautiful appearance with their tempt- 
ing arrays of jewelry, curios, porcelain, and other articles 
of ornament and utility. All of these shops have little 



Hong Kong and Canton. 



145 



shrines by the door dedicated to the God of Wealth. I 
have known some merchants in Christian countries who 
worshiped at the same shrine. 

Many of the streets form long arcades, covered and but 
dimly lighted. The tempered and mellow light, the brill- 
iant gilt and vermilion signs standing upon end, with their 
quaint Chinese lettering ; the color and variety of goods of- 
fered for sale, and the odd faces and costumes of buyers 
and sellers, all combine to form a strange and interesting 
picture. Here are shops with beautiful crepe and silk- 
embroidered goods, artificial flowers, fans, etc. ; then come 
handsome furniture establishments, where chairs, sofas, di- 
vans, cabinets, bedroom sets of black-wood, richly carved, 
and with variegated marble tops, are being manufactured 
and offered for sale. Workers in tin and brass and iron 
and wood are almost within touch as we pass along the re- 
sounding alleys. Here are markets with dried fish and 
strange fruits; undertaking establishments, with the great 
massive, strangely shaped coffins; and every now and then 
a pagan temple. Next comes a whole street devoted to 
shops dealing in the jade-stone, from which all sorts of or- 
naments are made; and adjoining these are great porcelain- 
establishments, a flouring-mill with eleven run of stones, 
these stones being turned by water-buffaloes and bullocks, 
blindfolded; and two or three large opium-dens. Odors of 
sandal-wood fill the air in various places, while in other 
quarters there are strange smells far more offensive. 

Through these kaleidoscopic streets we pushed our way, 
I in a sedan chair, the others walking. The streets were 
so narrow that as my coolies swung my chair along they 
kept up an incessant shouting to the crowd to clear the 
way; and they would good-naturedly part right and left, 
some taking shelter behind a sign-board, others dropping 
into friendly door-ways, and others flattening themselves 
10 



146 



China, the Middle Kingdom. 



against a wall until the chair, which almost filled the street, 
had passed. Whenever our company of four foreigners 
would stop, a crowd would instantly gather, and in five 
minutes the streets would be so blocked that the shouts of 
the crowd, surging from both sides and attempting to pass, 
would make a din such as cannot be heard outside a Chi- 
nese city. At such times the old nursery rhyme came back 
to me: 

O the babble of the Babel! 

the flutter and the fuss! 
To begin with Cain and Abel, 

And to finish up with us! 

The streets of Canton have high-sounding titles, such as 
" The Street of Benevolence and Love," that of " Refresh- 
ing Breezes," "Accumulated Blessings/' "Xinefold Bright- 
ness," "Ascending Dragon," "Great Peace," and "Thou- 
sand Beatitudes." These names are, however, ornamental 
— their Sunday clothes, as it were — and they have very 
common work-day names by which they are generally 
known. 

One of the most striking and interesting features of Can- 
ton is its boat life. Thousands of boats, forty or fifty deep, 
line both sides of the river, and it is estimated that no less 
than one million people live in these boats, the vast majority 
of whom never set foot on the land. Here they are born, 
spend their days, and die, and these boats are the only homes 
and the only shelter they have from their birth to their 
grave. They form a distinct class of the population, and 
are said to be not of Chinese origin, but to be remnants of 
the aborigines of the country. There is nothing now, how- 
ever, to distinguish them in speech or appearance from the 
ordinary Chinese. The boats are of all sizes and of all 
sorts, most of them small sampans, somewhat larger than an 
ordinary row-boat, with a simple mat or bamboo covering 
one end, while others are large and elaborately ornamented 



Hong Kong and Canton. 



147 



with carvings in wood, and painted in gilt and red. All of 
them have eyes on the prow, reminding one of the eye 
of Osiris which was painted on the Egyptian funeral bark 
that carried the dead across the lake to the final burial- 
place. 

These Cantonese boat-people are very skillful with their 
oars, and dart hither and thither along the streets and al- 
leys of their water city, conveying passengers and freight, 
and manage to pick up an uncertain and precarious living. 
The women do most of the rowing, and the girl who rowed 
us across the river to the temple of Honam, which was on 
the opposite side, fully understood her business, sculling and 
rowing with a dexterity that I have seldom seen surpassed. 

The most prominent buildings in Canton are the pawn- 
shops, large square stone towers rising up far above the oth- 
er houses. They look very much like the elevators of our 
Western cities, and are quite an institution among the Chi- 
nese. They not only do a regular pawnbroker's business, 
but are also used as places of deposit for valuable articles 
that are not in common use. The owners of these estab- 
lishments become responsible for the safe-keeping of these 
goods, the people having generally no safe place in which 
to keep them at home. But they also do a lively business 
in their regular line. In summer the average Chinaman 
pawns his winter clothing that he may have more capital 
to employ in his business, and when the cold weather comes 
he reclaims his needed clothing, if able. 

I have always been a little skeptical about the Chinese 
eating cats and rats, and so I asked Mr. Seymour if he 
could convince us by ocular demonstration that these were 
among the articles of diet of the Cantonese. He told us to 
follow him, and in five minutes' walk from Shameen we 
were at several " cat-restaurants." There was no mistaking 
it. There were some skinned and cleaned, several just 



^8 China, the Middle Kingdom. 

killed and being cleaned, and a . number of large crates full 
awaiting the "slaughter of the innocents." The eyes had 
#11 been taken out of those killed, and were in a box wait- 
ing for the apothecary, who sold them as valued medicines. 
A little later in the day we visited a large dog-restaurant 
where "chow" puppies and cats were sold. We saw the 
puppies — a number of them— hanging up with their tails 
and claws still on them, so that they could be easily identi- 
fied. The grinning caterer seemed to appreciate our amuse- 
ment and astonishment, and showed us a fat puppy await- 
ing the sacrifice, also fishing up some savory pieces of dog 
from the bottom of a smoking caldron. A large kettle 
was sitting in front of his establishment which bore this 
inscription: "Ching hoc non yonk shon pin," which one of 
our friends interpreted to be : " Eeal black cat inside always 
ready." 

Our friend told us that the flesh of black cats and dogs 
is preferred as being more nutritive, and in some parts of 
China it is customary for people to partake of dog flesh in 
the beginning of summer to fortify themselves against the 
coming heat. In the immense encyclopedia compiled un- 
der the direction of the Emperor K'ang-he, there is a re- 
ceipt for hashed dog. 

Dried rats also have a recognized place in the markets of 
Canton, and I saw some on one of the boats. They are eat- 
en not only by those who have a relish for them, but also by 
those who have a tendency to baldness, the flesh of rats be- 
ing considered an effectual hair-restorer. 

The transition is rather abrupt from this unsavory sub- 
ject to missionaries, but we must speak of the kind friends 
whom we met at Canton. We bore letters to a Missouri 
lady, Miss Young, and also to the Kev. Dr. Graves, both of 
the Baptist Mission. Here we also met the Rev. Mr. Sim- 
mons. They received us most cordially, and contributed 



Hong Kong and Canton. 



149 



much to the pleasure of our short stay in Canton. We also 
visited the Presbyterian Mission, where we met the Rev. B. 
C. Henry, Dr. Swan, Dr. John G. Kerr, Superintendent of 
the Medical Missionary Society's Hospital, and others. 
This hospital, which we visited, is the largest and oldest in 
China, and is doing a grand work, not only for the alle- 
viation of suffering, but for the cause of Christianity. Be- 
sides these I have mentioned, there are also at Canton the 
Church Mission, the London Missionary Society, the En- 
glish Wesleyans, and the Berlin (German) Missionary Soci- 
ety. Thus the work is going on, and, with the blessing of 
God and the help of these noble men and women, China 
will yet be redeemed. 



7. 

toese Sustains. 



1 REMEMBER when I was a boy and began the study 
Jf of geography, how puzzled I was when told of the Chi- 
nese who lived on the opposite side of the globe ; and it was 
difficult for me to rid myself of the idea that they were all 
standing on their heads. I have found that, though not lit- 
erally, they are metaphorically on their heads, and are not 
only our antipodes geographically, but also in their customs 
and modes of life. That they are awake when we are 
asleep, that their noon is our midnight, and their sunset 
our sunrise, are indications of the contrarieties which exist. 
"We shake hands with each other; the Chinaman salutes a 
friend by shaking his own hand. "We uncover the head as 
a mark of respect ; they keep their heads covered, but take 
off their shoes. W^e shave the face; they shave the head 
and eyebrows. "We believe in evolution; they in analysis. 
We begin at the center and work toward the circumference; 
tliey begin at the circumference and work toward the cen- 
ter. We count the cost, and finish what we begin; they 
never do. The Chinese have a great many grand things 
begun, and they take the big things first, despising the day 
of small things. For example, they have torpedo-boats, 
men-of-war, the telephone, and the telegraph, but no postal 
system and no currency. Instead of saying, "Good-morn- 
ing/' or, "How do you do?" the Chinese ask, "How old 
are you?" or, "Have you had your rice?" Auctioneers, 
instead of receiving bids, bid themselves, beginning with 
(loO) 



Chinese Customs. 



151 



the highest price and continuing to fall until they reach a 
price at which some one will take the article. In America 
ladies go to the stores to shop; in China the stores go to 
them. The finest articles are carried by the peddlers to 
the houses of the wealthy. We have the long beard in 
front; they the " pigtail" behind. Chinese carpenters, in 
using the fore-plane, draw it toward them instead of push- 
ing it from them. So the tailor sews from him, not toward 
his body, and holds his thread with his toes. 

In dress, the Chinaman begins where we end. He wears 
his shirt outside his coat, and his drawers outside his trou- 
sers. He whitens his shoes instead of blacking them, and 
lets his finger-nails grow instead of cutting them off. The 
men carry fans and wear skirts, and the women wear the 
breeches — not metaphorically, as is often the case with us, 
but literally. 

In their social habits and in eating, they are likewise our 
opposites. We begin with soup; they finish with it. We 
take our dessert and sweetmeats last; they theirs first. We 
drink cold water; they hot. With us the place of honor is 
the right hand; they seat the most honored guest on the 
left. They never touch beef, butter, milk, or cheese, but eat 
rats, cats, dogs, bird's-nests, shark fins, devil-fish, and snails. 
They use neither milk nor sugar in their tea, drink no cof- 
fee, eat with chopsticks instead of knives and forks, and 
chew betel-nut instead of tobacco. 

In our country the groom always goes after his bride; 
with them the bride is carried to the husband, as we saw 
being done in a gorgeous wedding-procession at Canton. 
With us young people always do their own courting; a 
young Chinaman employs a man to do his courting for him, 
and never sees his bride until he is married to her. 

While with us death is the most solemn of subjects, John 
Chinaman treats it as a joke and always laughs when it is 



152 



China, the Middle Kingdom. 



mentioned. They never even call the word, but speak of it 
as "a departure/' "gone," " passed away," etc., while the 
slang expression is, " He has stuck up the pigtail." They 
avoid all allusion to the subject, and yet keep coffins in their 
parlors. We would never think of giving a coffin as a pres- 
ent, but they have no more suitable birthday or feast-day 
gift. Their coffins are huge boxes, the planks of which are 
three or four inches thick. While we bury our dead at 
once, they keep their dead several weeks, sometimes a year; 
and then, instead of burying them in the ground, in ceme- 
teries, they bury them on top of the ground or simply place 
the coffin out in the open field without burying it at all. 
These unsightly mounds and exposed coffins are to be seen 
everywhere, not only in the country but also in the cities. 
Black is our mourning color ; white theirs. We go quietly 
and solemnly to the grave; they with tom-toms, cymbals, and 
many noisy demonstrations. We plant trees around the 
graves of our dead and rear monuments over them ; no shad- 
ow must ever fall upon a Chinese grave. We mourn for our 
dead ; they hire their mourners. 

Their books are also the reverse of ours, beginning just 
where ours end. We read horizontally, in lines, from left to 
right ; they perpendicularly, in columns, from right to left. 
Our titles are at the top; theirs at the side. Our foot-notes 
are at the bottom ; theirs at the top. They place the contents 
of a chapter at the end instead of the beginning. Their 
spoken language is not written, and their written language 
is not spoken. We have a character to represent each let- 
ler; they a character for each word. A Chinese " case " in 
a printing-office has over five thousand fonts of type, as I 
ascertained by actual count in one I visited. We use a pen 
and liquid ink for writing; they use a brush and a solid 
cake. They put the surname first and the Christian name last. 
Vehicles in passing turn to the left instead of the right. They 



Chinese Customs. 



153 



say " whoa" to a horse when they wish him to go, and cluck 
to him when they wish him to stop. The dress-makers and 
milliners are not women as with us, but men. The index 
finger of our mariner's compass points to the north ; theirs 
to the south. They say west-north and east-south, instead 
of north-west and south-east, and have six points of the com- 
pass instead of four, including the zenith and nadir in their 
enumeration. In America men kill their enemies in re- 
venge; a Chinaman takes vengeance by killing himself. 

In that land of contradictions grown up men fly kites 
and play marbles, and boys look on admiringly; policemen 
sound a tom-tom to warn marauders of their approach; 
bridesmaids are old women clad in black; and a husband 
never appears in public with his wife. They mount a horse 
from the right side instead of the left; draw canal-boats 
with men instead of horses ; sell wood by weight rather than 
by measure; sell silk by the pound and not by the yard; 
and actually build the roof of a house before they begin the 
foundation. 

Of all the contradiction of the Chinese, their language is 
the most contradictory, and appears to me an impenetrable 
and unfathomable abyss. They have no alphabet, but a 
character for each word — in all forty-four thousand charac- 
ters — though there are some two hundred and fifty radicals 
from which these characters are all formed. Three thou- 
sand of these, how T ever, form a sufficient vocabulary for 
most foreigners. The ultima thule of Chinese learning is the 
four elementary books and the five classics. These are the 
only subjects of study in a Chinese school, and the boy learns 
most of them by heart. For four thousand years these have 
been the only text-books for the Chinese, and this doubtless 
accounts in a large measure for their conservatism. Their 
minds are all cast in the same mold, and the memory has 
been unduly cultivated at the expense of the thinking pow- 



154 



China, the Middle Kingdom. 



ers. Thus a Chinaman is the same the world over. The 
character of the nation is stereotyped, and their system of 
education has projected the same set of ideas from one gen- 
eration to another. 

The Chinese language is a very difficult one to acquire, 
not only because of the great number of characters, but 
because of its peculiar system of accent and intonation. 
The same word will sometimes have eight or ten totally 
different meanings, according to the accent or inflection or 
some peculiarity in the intonation. Some very amusing 
mistakes sometimes arise from missionaries or other new- 
comers giving a word the wrong inflection. A missionary 
was preaching a very earnest sermon a short time ago on 
the redemption of all men by the Lord Jesus Christ, and 
unfortunately frequently used a word which in one tone 
means hog, and in another Lord. A heathen, who was per- 
haps hearing the gospel for the first time, seemed a very 
attentive listener, and after the sermon was over some one 
asked him how he liked it. "0," said he, "I thought it 
was a fine discourse on pig!" The preacher had given 
the wrong intonation to the word, and, as the Chinese are 
very fond of pork, it had caught the attention of this man. 
Another missionary, committing a similar blunder, told 
his congregation that if they did not repent they would all 
go to the post-office, and a Sunday-school teacher in our mis- 
sion gravely informed his class that Judas Iscariot went out 
and danced himself to death! A lady at Shanghai amused 
us very much by telling one of her early experiences with 
her servant, whom she tried to induce to go out and kill the 
donkey for breakfast. But we who laugh would perhaps 
make even more ludicrous mistakes if we were to attempt 
to struggle with that most bewildering language — a lan- 
guage which has as many dialects as provinces, so that a man 
who goes a hundred miles from home is called a foreigner 



Chinese Customs. 



155 



and cannot understand a word of the language which is 
spoken. 

But while it i3 true that citizens of different provinces 
cannot understand each other's conversation, the written 
language is the common medium of thought for the whole 
. Empire. No language, living or dead, puts one in commu- 
nication with so large a portion of the human family. 
When Alexander had conquered the world he was a for- 
eigner in his own provinces, and could not speak the lan- 
guage of a fourth of his subjects. When Rome had belted 
the Mediterranean Sea and extended her conquests as far 
as civilization reached, her Empire was a confusion of 
tongues. The sun never sets on English territory, and her 
tattoo is never silent as it goes round the world. But there 
are fifty different languages written and spoken in the vast 
Empire of Victoria. The English tongue cannot reach 
more than one hundred million souls, while the Chinese writ- 
ten language reaches five hundred million. Some one has 
said that the human race may (not very unequally) be di- 
vided into, first, the Chinese ; second, all other nations. To 
reach the latter half, you must have three thousand and 
sixty-three tongues; to reach the former, only one. 

Probably marriage is more nearly universal in China 
than in any other civilized or semi-civilized country in the 
world. It is considered indispensable, and few men pass 
the age of twenty without taking a wife. A husband may 
divorce his wife for any one of seven different causes, ranging 
from the disease of leprosy to the habit of garrulousness. 
But no offense on the part of the husband gives the wife 
occasion for divorce. Confucius says : " Of all people, wom- 
en are the most difficult to manage. If you are familiar 
with them they become forward, and if you keep them at a 
distance they become discontented. " 

One of the most singular customs of China, and that 



156 



China, the Middle Kingdom. 



which, perhaps, has excited the most universal attention, is 
that of the women binding their feet. It is said to have 
originated as the custom of wearing cravats arose from 
Alexander having a wry neck. The story is that an Em- 
press of China named Tan-Key, w T ho lived some three thou- 
sand years ago, having club feet, induced her husband to 
impose the same deformity on all his female subjects. A 
more ungallant reason is given by some, who say that it was 
a clever device invented by husbands to act as a restraint 
on the gadding-about tendencies of their wdves. However 
this may be, it is one of the most cruel of customs, and is by 
no means confined, as I supposed, to the higher classes. I 
saw women breaking rock on the street whose feet were not 
more than three inches in length. This compression of the 
feet begins when the child is six years old, by turning the 
toes under and bandaging them tightly. The foot is never 
allowed to grow afterward, and never is free from the band- 
age except for a few moments at a time. The smaller the 
foot, the more beautiful it is considered, and the feet of 
many of the women are only tw T o and a half inches long. 
These cannot walk at all, and when they attempt to hobble 
along must be supported by a servant on either side. I 
saw a girl one day attempting to walk alone, and as she 
limped along she supported herself by clinging to the sides 
of the houses and fences. It is usually only the higher 
classes whose feet are so small that they cannot walk with- 
out assistance, but nine-tenths of the women whom I saw 
in China had bound feet. Such is the power of habit and 
fashion that, notwithstanding the suffering entailed, they 
cannot break away from it, and it frequently happens that 
women whose feet are not so bound will thrust their toes 
into the tiny shoes and wear long pantaloons to conceal 
their natural feet. When the missionaries talk to the wom- 
en and men about this custom they say that it is not so bad 



Chinese Customs. 



157 



as the habit our ladies have of compressing their waists. 
Are they very far wrong? 

The cue was imposed upon the Chinese by their Tartar 
conquerors as a sign of subjection, and it is high treason for 
a Chinaman to cut it off. Like many other customs which 
were at first tokens of disgrace, the pigtail is now consid- 
ered by the Chinaman as both highly ornamental and useful, 
and he expends great care on it. There are few barber- 
shops in China, but there are large numbers of peripatetic 
barbers whose business it is to shave the heads and dress the 
queues of their customers. You see these barbers with their 
razors stuck in their belts, and frequently carrying a stool, 
everywhere throughout China and the East generally. 
There are said to be seven thousand in Canton alone. The 
right management of the pigtail is among the Chinese what 
the management of the hair is among us. It is a mark of 
respect to allow it to hang at full length, and any one who 
would venture to address a superior without having his tail 
hanging down his back would be considered as boorish as 
an American who would enter a lady's drawing-room with- 
out removing his hat. 

The caudal appendage is also frequently of great utility. 
A sailor will tie his hat to his tail when the wind rises, 
and a school-master sometimes uses his tail in lieu of his 
cane. If his cue is not of sufficient length, the China- 
-man will take black silk and make an artificial "switch," 
and thus increase his tail to the regulation length. 

As in every thing else, so the Chinese are very peculiar 
in deciding when their calendar year begins. There is a 
Board of Astronomers at Pekin, who have an inscrutable 
method of calculating when the New year ought to come, 
and every year it is on a different day. No one knows 
when it is to be until they issue their almanac, which is 
usually about six months before the time appointed for 



158 



China, the Middle Kingdom. 



New - year. It generally falls between the first and fif- 
teenth of February. At Xew-year they have a holiday 
lasting from two weeks to a month, when all places of busi- 
ness and all schools are closed, family gatherings are held, 
social reunions take place, all debts are paid, and every- 
body has a good time, except the poor fellow who hasn't 
the money to settle up. If a Chinaman cannot pay his 
debts at Xew-year, he considers himself ruined and dis- 
graced, and often commits suicide. This latter practice is 
more common, however, in the interior than at Shanghai, 
where contact with foreigners has taught them that a man 
may not pay his debts and yet live. 

A Chinese year has three hundred and sixty days. 
About every five years they have an intercalary month to 
make up the deficiency. Their months are either twenty- 
eight or twenty-nine days, and no one can tell which will 
be the long and which the short months until the alma- 
nac is issued. 

Eclipses are announced by this same Board, and as the 
time for an eclipse approaches, the officials throughout the 
Empire post a proclamation at each " yamen," or official 
residence, calling on all the people to turn out and keep 
the " wild sun " from eating up the tame sun. They come 
with their gongs and drums and tom-toms, to which they 
add their shouts and screams, until the scene is a perfect 
pandemonium. The whole city is in an uproar, and when 
the eclipse is over, they go home and congratulate them- 
selves that they have averted a great calamity. Yet in 
making all this noise at an eclipse, they only follow the ex- 
ample of North American Indians, Peruvians, Africans, and 
many other semi-civilized races. Even the Eomans at an 
eclipse flung fire-brands in the air, blew trumpets, and 
clanged brazen pots and pans. 

The Chinese have a system of merit and demerit which 



Chinese Customs. 



159 



is curious and interesting. Each Chinaman keeps a regu- 
lar account with himself according to the principles stated 
in a book called " The Rules of Merit and Transgressions." 
These rules give an enumeration of almost every conceiv- 
able action, stating the commercial value of good deeds in 
the market of Hades, and the relative scale of punishments 
for the evil. Every night the Chinaman enters in his ac- 
count-book the actions of the day and the number of marks 
which he has gained or lost. At the end of the month he 
burns the book, and thus transfers the account to the next 
world. The following are samples of these rules: 

Credit marks: To pay the debts of a father, ten marks; 
when rich, to marry a deformed girl to whom betrothed 
when poor, one hundred; to lend an umbrella, one; to en- 
treat a mother not to commit infanticide, thirty ; to save one 
hundred insects, one ; to bury a bird, one ; to pick up one 
grain of rice, one ; for one year not to eat beef or dog meat, 
five ; to forgive a debt, one hundred ; to destroy the stereo- 
typed plates of immoral books, three hundred; purity 
through life, one thousand; to hang up a lantern on the 
street, one. 

Debit account (transgression demerits) : To love a wife 
more than father or mother, one hundred ; to listen to a 
wife against one's own brothers, ten ; to be double-tongued, 
thirty ; to be insincere, ten ; to have one bad thought, ten ; 
to see immoral theatricals, ten ; to dig up a worm in winter, 
one; to laugh at an ugly person, three; to get drunk, five; 
to be guilty of usury, one hundred; to misuse written or 
printed paper, fifty ; to cook beef or dog meat, one hun- 
dred ; to dig up a coffin, one hundred ; to assist in infanti- 
cide, fifty; to drown an infant, one hundred; to publish 
an obscene book, measureless. 

The scale on which these marks are graduated gives a 
good insight into Chinese character and exalts our concep- 



160 



China, the Middle Kingdom. 



tion of their morality. It will be noticed what great im- 
portance they attach to purity of life and thought. Many 
in Christian lands might learn lessons from them. 

When we were on Brother Parker's canal-boat I noticed 
his k; boy " carefully gathering up every grain of rice that 
had been dropped during our meal, that he might add to 
his merit marks. 

But the outward morality of the Chinese is wholly de- 
ceptive, and the gospel only can purify and regenerate 
them. Besides their gross idolatry and superstition, they 
are guilty of the most sinful and corrupt practices, while 
lying, theft, suicide, infanticide, and many other crimes are 
considered virtues by them. The testimony of all foreigners 
and missionaries is that dishonesty is universal among them. 
They are too shrewd to steal openly, knowing that honesty 
is the best policy; but if you give them a chance they 
will cheat your eye-teeth out of you. You may lay a 
five-dollar gold-piece on your table, and it will lie there 
for a month and your Chinese servant will not touch it; 
but change it into five silver dollars, and give him one each 
day to buy your marketing, and he will steal twenty-five 
cents per day from you, telling you he has spent it all. He 
knows that you cannot detect him. An English gentle- 
man in Shanghai had a Chinese servant who, in this petty, 
thieving way, stole so much from him that he at last had 
him arrested and brought before the court, which there 
consists of an English and a Chinese judge. The English 
judge, after hearing the evidence, declared that the man 
must be punished; but the Chinese judge said: " How 
much do you suppose this man has stolen from you?" 
" Well/' said the master, " I know he has stolen more, but 
I will say fifteen per cent, of all the money with which I 
have intrusted him." "Well," said the judge, "if you 
have come here to live among these people, and only lose 



Chinese Customs. 



161 



fifteen cents out of every dollar, you may consider yourself 
a very fortunate man. I will not punish him." 

Suicide is very common among them, and is considered 
an act of great virtue. Not only do men take their own 
lives, but young women of wealth and good family often 
commit suicide, and the Emperor will have a monument 
reared to their honor, while poets will sing their praises. 

Infanticide is practiced to a very great extent. It is 
said that in winter you may sometimes, early in the morn- 
ing, pass along the streets of Pekin and pick up a cart-load 
of dead babies. Baby-towers, into which these little inno- 
cents are frequently thrust alive, are to be seen all over the 
land. If a weak, peevish baby is born into the world, they im- 
agine (as they believe in the transmigration of souls) that it 
is the spirit of some enemy come back to torment them, and 
they will sometimes kill it on that account. Then they are 
so poor that they will sometimes kill the baby, especially if 
it is a girl, to be rid of it. 

These and hundreds of other like crimes stain the Chi- 
nese character, and they stand in dire need of the gospel. 
Thousands are lost every year who would be saved if the 
Church in Christian lands sent them that gospel. 

Just before leaving Shanghai I learned three very inter- 
esting facts. Gen. Kennedy, the United States Consul- 
general, told me that only a few days ago the Chinese 
merchants of Shanghai had, unsolicited, given him one 
thousand dollars for the relief of the sufferers in the 
Charleston earthquake. Also that the Chinese Govern- 
ment has just paid to the Methodist Episcopal Church 
twenty-two thousand taels (about thirty thousand dollars) 
for the injuries inflicted during the recent riot in the west 
of China. The last fact is the most interesting of all. A 
proclamation has been issued under the direction of the 
Pekin Government and posted up conspicuously in every 
11 



162 



China, the Middle Kingdom. 



province, reminding the people of the treaty stipulations 
with foreign Governments, and calling on them to respect 
the subjects of those Governments in their midst. It es- 
pecially speaks in commendatory terms of the work of 
Christian missions, and reminds the people that the only 
object of the missionaries is to do them good. This is the 
first public recognition of Christianity and the work of 
Christian missions ever made by the Chinese Government, 
and is one of the results of missionary labors. 
The following is the proclamation: 

Kiong, Intendent of Circuit of Suchow and Lukiang District, of 
the Second Rank, Controller of the Water-ways and Salt Revenue 
Department, Advanced One Grade (in promotion) and Recorded 
Ten Times (i. e., noted by the Emperor ten times). — 

Issues this Important Proclamation concerning the Catholic and 
Protestant Churches. From the time of the establishment of com- 
mercial relations between China and foreign countries, several tens 
of years have elapsed. During this time the members of those sects 
have rented houses and dwelt in the country, and traveled about 
preaching their doctrines, which is all in accordance with the treaty. 
Their only object is to exhort men to the practice of virtue, and 
they do not in any way interfere with the welfare of (our) people. 
Neither do the common people who are members of those Churches 
become seditious persons and violators of the law, and hence do not 
come within the prohibitory statute (against secret societies). All 
of us, Chinese officials, merchants, literati, and common people, each 
abiding in his alloted sphere and attending to his own business, and 
not seeking to oppress or overreach others, seeing that we are em- 
braced within the guardianship and protection of the Imperial Gov- 
ernment, should not become doubtful and suspicious (of the Catho- 
lics and Protestants), and seek to prevent them from residing on 
our soil. 

Nevertheless, there is still a want of harmony between the peo- 
ple and those Churches, and difficulties have recently arisen in con- 
sequence. At first these difficulties were only of a trifling nature, 
growing out of slight misunderstandings and mutual dislikes, but 
they have gradually increased until the Church-members on one 
Bide and the foolish common people on the other become set in 



Chinese Customs. 



163 



their mutual distrust. Then one or two meddlesome fellows came 
forward to stir up and increase the strife, and the rogues and idlers 
of the locality, seeking occasion for thieving and robbery in con- 
fusion and riot, joined the mob and increased the disturbance. 
Then, when serious damage was done, and the matter could not be 
settled, those base fellows would deny having had any thing to do 
with it. But the local officials, receiving orders to investigate the 
matter, were obliged to make searching inquiry as to the authors of 
the disturbance and punish them, sometimes by corporeal punish- 
ment, or, in severe cases, by the confiscation of the property of the 
offender. In this way very many have been led to take part in 
such disturbances, and great numbers have suffered in consequence. 
This is truly lamentable. 

On account of this, the Great Officials have been ordered by Im- 
perial Edict, dated Kwang-su, 10th year, 7th moon, 7th day, to pro- 
tect, throughout all the provinces, and at all times, all the Church- 
es (in their several jurisdictions), and prevent disturbance and riot. 
In accordance with this decree, we have ordered all the minor offi- 
cials within our jurisdiction to obey this decree; and we do, more- 
over, hereby notify all classes of people, civil and military, within 
our jurisdiction that you ought to know and understand that the 
preachers and people in the aforesaid Churches, living together 
with you in the land, should receive the same treatment that guests 
receive from their host, and in the ordinary affairs of life, polite- 
ness v and forbearance (in the treatment of them) is of the first impor- 
tance. 

If difficulties arise that cannot be settled (by the parties con- 
cerned), the only proper thing to do is to appeal to the local officials 
and have the matter thoroughly examined and justly decided. 
These officials have full power (to settle such matters). Be careful 
and do not in a fit of momentary anger allow yourself to fall into 
the net of the law. I have been connected with foreign affairs along 
the coast for over twenty years. I am well acquainted with the re- 
lations of Chinese and foreigners, and of the common people with 
the Church-members, and I am not afraid to take the trouble neces- 
sary to arrive at a clear understanding of any matter, and this not 
only with a view of protecting the Churches (aforesaid), but more 
particularly with reference to the welfare of your people. Let ev- 
ery father command (his son), and every elder brother exhort (his 
younger brother) to abate their anger and cease strife and turn for- 



164 



China, the Middle Kingdom. 



ever from their former (evil) ways and thus avoid bitter repentings 
hereafter. This is what I most earnestly hope for. 

Respect this, a special proclamation. Given this 5th day of the 
10th moon of the 12th year of the reign of Kwang-su (October 9, 
1886). 

Posted at the chapel inside the west gate of Shanghai. 

The world does move, and this proclamation is a clear 
proof that China, with all her conservatism, is slowly awak- 
ening from her sleep of four thousand years. 



VI. 

The Religions of Sana. 



tIBBON says that when travelers from the North used 
to visit Rome, they would go and stand in front of 
the great Coliseum and say : " While the Coliseum stands, 
Rome will stand. When the Coliseum falls, Rome will 
fall, and when Rome falls, so will the woiid." So it may 
be said of China, the great stronghold of sin and error: 
"When China falls, the world will fall; and when she is 
conquered for Christ, the victory will be complete in all 
the East." The Chinese are found throughout the whole 
Orient from Japan to India, and they dominate all of East- 
ern Asia and the islands of the Northern Pacific. 

But the magnitude of the work which the Christian 
Church has undertaken in attempting the conversion of 
China can only be comprehended by one who has been on 
the ground and has been brought face to face with the great 
hard mass of heathenism. For four thousand years the 
Chinese have been intrenching themselves behind their for- 
tifications of idolatry, ignorance, and superstition, and it 
is not the work of a day or a year, or even a century, to 
dislodge them. When we remember how Buddhism has 
grown into the very heart of the nation, how Confucianism 
ramifies every part of their civil and social life, and how 
Taoism means patriotism and devotion to the State, we can 
understand that the destruction of these three religions of 
China — and the three are one — means the complete recast- 
ing of their national life. These three dominant religious 

(165) 



166 China, the Middle Kingdom. 



systems are not rival and antagonistic, but are co-ordinate 
and supplementary, the people making use of them together 
and giving to either one prominence, as their fancy may 
dictate. The ethical in Confucianism, the physical in Tao- 
ism, and the metaphysical in Buddhism live together in 
such a state of interfusion that it is difficult to separate 
them. A man worships in a temple of Confucius to-day, is 
a Buddhist to-morrow, and the next day avows himself a 
disciple of Taoism. It is probable that in former times these 
systems were more distinct and their classification more accu- 
rate, but they have become so modified and intertwined that 
it is difficult to separate them, and there is, in fact, but little 
distinction between them in the Chinese mind. It is a mat- 
ter of dispute whether Confucianism is entitled to be con- 
sidered a religion or a mere system of ethics. While it is 
true that it is a system of politico-moral philosophy, ap- 
plying to the pressing wants and circumstances of men, 
and carefully excluding all reference to spiritual and di- 
vine things and the wants of the future, it is also true that 
it takes the place of religion in many minds, and that the 
most magnificent temples in the Empire are erected in all 
the cities and towns, consecrated to the memory of Confu- 
cius, and dedicated to his worship. Xo other system wields 
so great an influence over the religious thoughts of the 
people, and it is difficult to properly comprehend the exalted 
position which Confucius occupies in the Chinese mind and 
heart. They call him the " Throneless King," which is the 
earliest declaration of the royalty of intellect. He is the 
only one of his race who has achieved a world-wide repu- 
tation, and his fame extends over larger territories and 
vaster populations than that of any other uninspired teach- 
er. He was born in the year 551 B.C., and was contem- 
porary with Socrates, and with the great Hebrew prophets, 
Ezekiel and Daniel. At the time of his birth, Cyrus was 



The Religions of China. 



167 



on the throne of Persia, Xerxes was invading Greece, and 
the Jews had just returned from the Babylonish captivity. 
His parents were poor, though well connected and highly 
respectable, his father being a military officer, and descended 
from the ancient royal family of the Shang dynasty. His 
father died when he was only three years old, and his mother 
was left to struggle alone with poverty. He very early 
manifested a taste for study, and began to teach when 
twenty-two years old. He soon gathered a large number 
of disciples about him, and continued to teach for some 
fourteen years. Although several times appointed to office, 
his morality and theories of government and of political 
economy were of so severe a type that he was each time 
speedily relegated again to private life. Much of his long 
life was spent in journeying from province to province, 
striving in vain to correct the abuses of his times, impart- 
ing instruction to his followers, and prosecuting his studies. 
Though for 2,300 years his philosophy has controlled Chi- 
nese thought, like Socrates, Gautama, and other great 
teachers, he was unknown and unappreciated while living, 
and the same may almost be said of him that w r as said of 
Homer : 

Seven cities claim a Homer dead, 

Through which a living Homer begged his bread. 

Confucius did not profess to teach any system of religion, 
and in fact he disowned all claims to wisdom or superior 
knowledge. He taught morality, and yet said distinctly 
that he was "a transmitter and not a maker, believing in 
and loving the ancients." One of the sayings of Confucius 
comes very near the Golden Rule, and teaches negatively 
what Christ taught positively. One of his disciples asked 
him: " Is there one word which may serve as a rule for 
practice all of one's life?" To which the philosopher an- 
swered: "What you do not want done to yourself, that do 



168 



China, the Middle Kingdom. 



not to others." Confucius appealed very largely to the con- 
science, and the Chinese are great believers in what they call 
" the No-yes heart." 

We search in vain through his writings for any thing re- 
lating to the duties of man to God. He frankly declared 
that he did not comprehend the gods, and thought it best 
not to meddle much with them. He said: "The part of 
wisdom is to attend carefully to our duties to men, and 
while w T e respect the gods to keep aloof from them." But 
w r hile he thus abstained from touching the question of a fut- 
ure state or man's relation to God, the duties growing out 
of human relations are well defined. First in the category 
of human duties stands filial piety, and conjugal fidelity is 
also strenuously insisted upon. He urges truth and honor 
among friends, and passes the highest encomiums upon man- 
ly character. One of his proverbs is : " He that knows the 
right, and fears to do it, is not a brave man." 

His greatest error was in teaching the self-regenerative 
power of human nature. He taught the innate goodness of 
humanity, and that man could redeem himself by his own 
efforts. He covered the whole duty of man by the five re- 
lations subsisting between Emperor and officer, father and 
son, husband and wife, older and younger brothers, and 
friends. If a man bore himself properly in these relations, 
he did all that was required of him. Rev. Dr. Crawford 
well said at the Missionary Conference in Shanghai : " Con- 
fucianism boasts of its teachings of the five relations; but it 
has only the five fingers without the palm on which they 
all depend, for it knows nothing of God." So that the phi- 
losophy of Confucius, like all other systems of human phi- 
losophy, utterly failed in that it had no regenerative quality. 
Christianity is differentiated from all other systems of relig- 
ion in that it begins at the heart, and, changing that, works 
out to the life, thus regenerating the whole man. Any sys- 



The Religions of China. 



169 



tern like that of Confucius is a failure, which seeks to make 
men better without making them holier. 

Next to Confucianism, Buddhism occupies the most con- 
spicuous place in the religions of China. In fact all the 
disciples of Confucius are Buddhists, and while the Chinese 
sage is the last appeal on all questions of political economy 
or morality throughout the whole Empire, the traditions and 
teachings of Buddhism are no less venerated. Buddhism 
is the religion of perhaps five hundred millions of people, or 
more than one-fourth the inhabitants of the globe, its disci- 
ples outnumbering those of any other religion. It has 
spread over all the vast region north and east of the Hima- 
layas as far as Siberia on one side and the Pacific Ocean on 
the other, going even to many islands of the sea. It is found 
in India beyond the Ganges, and in the foot-hills of the 
Himalayas, in Ceylon and Siam, in Burmah and Malay, 
and is the prevailing faith of China, Japan, and Corea. 

Sakya Muni, Gautama, or Buddha, as he is variously called, 
was the son of a Kajah of Kapila, born about 650 B.C. His 
native land is a small province situated on the southern 
slopes of the Himalayas, between Nipal and Sikhim. The 
young prince was brought up in every luxury, married a 
lovely wife, and was the father of a son. But he became 
surfeited with pleasure, and having seen an old man, a dis- 
eased man, and a dead man, his eyes were opened to the woes 
of humanity. This feeling was intensified by the belief in 
metempsychosis, so universal in the Eastern world, and he 
saw the evils, not only of an individual life, but of an end- 
less chain of successive existences, beginning with an un- 
known past and running on into eternity. He becomes a 
changed man ; abandons his father's palace and his expec- 
tation of a throne ; deserts his wife and child ; cuts himself 
off from all the ties binding him to the world, and becomes 
one of those religious mendicants who have always abound- 



170 



China, the Middle Kingdom. 



ed in India. After carrying his alms-bowl around the city 
of Rajagriha on the southern bank of the Ganges, he retired 
into the jungle of Gaya, where in meditation and solitude he 
prepared himself to become a Buddha, or apostle to deliver 
humanity from the miseries of a prolonged existence. From 
thence he went to the deer-forest near Benares, and about 
the time that Thales was teaching in Greece, Zoroaster in 
Persia, Confucius in China, and Daniel in Babylon, he be- 
gan to preach what he termed the law, and to exhort the 
people against theft, murder, falsehood, adultery, and in- 
temperance. This Indian sage was one of the earliest tem- 
perance reformers, and no modern prohibitionist ever advo- 
cated total abstinence more strenuously than did he. Xor 
did he content himself with a mere negative morality; he 
taught a practical benevolence, and good actions, good words, 
and good thoughts were the frequent theme3 of his sermons. 
The converts of Buddha multiplied rapidly. The legends 
say that fifty-four princes and one thousand fire-worshipers 
speedily became converts ; kings became his disciples ; Brah- 
mans turned from their ancient religion to this new faith; 
his father, wife, son and child were soon among his follow- 
ers; and erelong he had a retinue of twenty thousand 
priests. 

Buddhism is a great improvement over Brahmanism, of 
which it was a reformation. It has no bloody, obscene rites, 
as has the Hindoo faith; nor does it outrage decency and 
morality. Gautama began his career of a religious teacher 
with the honest and noble purpose of elevating and purify- 
ing humanity. The Buddhism of the present day is no more 
like the faith he taught than Romanism is like the religion 
of the Nazarene. 

The chief philosophy of Buddha was a repression of the 
natural desires — his creed was a mixture of stoicism and 
mysticism. Xirvana, the summum bonum of existence, is ex- 



The Religions of China. 



171 



tinction, cessation of being, loss of individuality in God. 
It is reached by contemplation and asceticism, by conquer- 
ing all the natural passions and desires. In the hands of 
the metaphysical followers of the great teacher, Buddhism 
becomes pure nihilism. Buddha, denying himself the pleas- 
ures of this superior unconscious state, pauses on the very 
threshold to give exercise to his benevolence in instructing 
and elevating men. 

Buddha's table of the law has five commandments — do 
not kill; do not steal; do not commit adultery; do not lie; 
do not become intoxicated. These are the rules of life for 
all men. But to those who aspire to a purely religious life, 
other and stricter rules are given. 

Some writer says that Buddhists are a strange paradox — 
religious atheists. " Their daily prayers are endless repe- 
titions, designed merely to exert a reflex influence on the 
worshiper. Those in w T hom discipline is complete have 
entered Nirvana- — not an elysium of conscious enjoyment, 
but a negative state of exemption from pain." 

Buddhism was introduced into China A.D. 61. That 
year the Emperor Ming-ti sent an embassy to the West to 
seek for religious teachers. It is said that this was in con- 
sequence of a dream, though it is not improbable that ru- 
mors of him who was "born King of the Jews" may have 
traveled to Eastern Asia and caused the deputation to be 
sent. The messengers reached India, and there met with 
Buddhist priests, who told them of their deity, Buddha, and 
of the doctrines of a future state, and a way of escape from 
sin and its consequences. They supposed they had found 
the object of their search, and returned to China with 
eighteen Buddhist teachers. Early in the fourth century 
native Chinese began to take Buddhist monastic vow t s, and 
the new faith spread rapidly. " Large monasteries began 
to be established in North China, and nine-tenths of the 



172 



China, the Middle Kingdom. 



people," says a native historian, " followed the faith of the 
great Indian sage." Buddhism was vigorously propagated 
in China by missionaries and books, and at the beginning 
of the sixth century there were three thousand Indian mis- 
sionaries there preaching their faith, and temples had mul- 
tiplied to thirteen thousand. What a contrast to the work 
being done by Christian missionary societies of the richest 
nations of the w^orld, who only maintain four hundred mis- 
sionaries among the four hundred millions of China — one 
to a million ! Were the Buddhists of India more solicitous 
about the propagation of their faith than the Christians of 
America and England are for the spread of the gospel? 

There is a striking resemblance between Buddhism and 
Romanism, which has been noticed by all waiters who have 
compared the two systems. Both teach the celibacy of the 
priesthood; prayers in an unknown tongue; burning of 
incense and candles ; prayers to saints and intercessors, and 
to a virgin with a child ; prayers for the dead ; works of su- 
pererogation, and self-imposed austerities and bodily afflic- 
tions. Both have monastic orders, monks and nuns, rosa- 
ries, feast-days and fast-days, a formal daily service, pictures 
and images, religious processions, relics and fabulous legends. 
If you should happen into a Japanese Buddhistic temple, 
wdthout knowing where you w T ere, you would conclude at 
once that you were in a Roman Catholic Church. 

Legge says that modern Taoism was begotten by Bud- 
dhism out of the old Chinese superstitions. Its forms are 
those of Buddhism, while its voice and spirit are fanatically 
base and cruel. There is, however, in this system a more 
distinct recognition of spiritual existence than in either 
Confucianism or Buddhism. It is a mystic sort of relig- 
ion, however, which deals in spirits and incantations, astrol- 
ogy and alchemy, pretends to hold intercourse with the 
other world, and has many points of resemblance to our 



The Religions of China. 



173 



modern spiritualism. The sect originated with Lao-tsz, a 
Chinese philosopher, who was born 604 B.C. There is in 
this system much that is contradictory, for, while teaching 
spiritual existence, it regards matter as eternal. "The 
grosser forms of different substances tend downward, and 
constitute the solid material of the earth ; the more refined 
essences tend upward, and wander through space, possessed 
of individuality and life, and constituting, when they as- 
sume visible forms, the stars which look down from their 
spheres upon the lower world. While the earth is composed 
of the grosser and the heavens of the refined forms of mat- 
ter, so also the body and the soul of man are similarly con- 
stituted." Taoism is really the religion of the Chinese 
people, and all of their superstitions, foolish ideas of Fung- 
shui, divinations, etc., belong to the system. But it is ready 
to decay, and the day is at hand when it will be plucked up 
root and branch, and cast out from the land of its birth. 
A greater than Lao-tsz or Confucius or Gautama is begin- 
ning to speak to the millions of China, and the day is com- 
ing when China shall be redeemed from these false relig- 
ions, and when the mighty forces of Christianity shall take 
possession of that vast Empire. May God hasten the hour! 



VII. 

Missions, 



AS early as the sixth century, missionaries were sent to 
China by the Nestorians of Armenia, and their labors 
for several centuries were attended with a considerable de- 
gree of success. Xumerous Christian communities were es- 
tablished throughout the Empire, numbering at one time 
as many as thirty thousand, and they were in no way in- 
terfered with until the great Mongol conqueror, Genghis 
Khan, inaugurated a fierce persecution which resulted in 
their complete extinction, about A.D. 1369, when the down- 
fall of the Mongol dynasty occurred. These Xestorians left 
a record of their work on a celebrated monument in Sen- 
gan-foo. This record gives a short history of th« sect from 
the year 630 to 781, and also an abstract of the Christian 
religion. • 

During the last century of the existence of the Nestorian 
Church in China, Roman Catholic missionaries first entered 
the Celestial Empire. The first of these was Jean de Corvin, 
who with difficulty established a footing for his Church. 
In 1307 he was appointed archbishop by Pope Clement V., 
and several other missionaries were sent to his assistance. 
A number of flourishing churches were established, but all 
these shared the fate of the Xestorians, and forty years after 
the death of Corvin no trace of them was to be found. 

For several centuries no further attempt was made to 
Christianize this great Empire, but in the sixteenth cent- 
ury the Jesuits undertook the task. The history of their 
(174) 



Missions. 



175 



enterprise is very similar to that of the two which preceded 
them. For some time it looked as if they would be suc- 
cessful, and they stood high in favor with some of the early 
Emperors of the Manchu dynasty. But, through disagree- 
ments and quarrels among themselves, they finally fell into 
disrepute; were suspected of plots and intrigues against the 
Government; were finally driven from the country, and 
the natives forbidden to become Christians. After this 
China was closed to foreigners, and nearly all of the native 
Catholics went back to their old religion. But when, two 
centuries later, by the treaties of 1842, China was once more 
opened, a few scattered descendants of those early Catholics 
were found dispersed through the Empire, and they formed 
a good nucleus for the re-opening of the Roman missions. 

In the last forty years the Catholics have been working 
vigorously, and have their missions in all parts of China. 
They report stations in sixteen of the nineteen provinces, 
and claim 861,000 communicants,, and 129,678 baptized 
children. 

Robert Morrison, the " last maker" of Norfolk, England, 
was the pioneer Protestant missionary in China. He was 
sent out by the London Missionary Society in 1807, having 
previously prepared himself for his w T ork by making boot- 
trees all day and studying all night. He first went, to the 
East India Company's factory at Canton, and afterward to 
the Portuguese settlement at Macao, diligently studying the 
language all the while, and laboring on a translation of the 
Holy Scriptures into Chinese. In seven years he com- 
pleted his translation of the New Testament, and the same 
year he baptized his first convert. About this time he was 
joined by the Rev. William Milne, and in 1818 these two 
men gave the entire Bible to the Chinese in their own 
tongue. Morrison labored in China for twenty-seven years, 
translating, teaching, acting as interpreter in commercial 



176 



China, the Middle Kingdom, 



and diplomatic service, praying and preaching when he 
could. In 1830 he had only ten converts, and during all 
these years he toiled almost alone in the face of the great- 
est discouragements and difficulties, but with undaunted 
faith and indomitable energy. Several missionaries were 
sent to his assistance by the London Society, but none of 
them gave more than a few years of service to the work, 
except the Rev. W. H. Medhurst, who spent forty years in 
efficient labor in the China Mission. The isetherland So- 
ciety sent Rev. Charles Gutslaff in 1827, and in 1830-33 
the American Board sent Bridgeman, Abeel, and Williams. 
In 1842 the treaty between the British and Chinese Gov- 
ernments was made, by which the ports of Canton, Amoy, 
Foochow, and Shanghai were opened, giving foreigners the 
right to live at these points and to build churches. The 
great missionary societies of England and America at once 
entered these open doors, and aggressive missionary work 
may be said to have begun in earnest from that date. Con- 
verts began to multiply, and the work has extended rapidly 
since that period. In 1850 eighteen societies were repre- 
sented at Hong Kong and the five open ports. These have 
increased to thirty-four at the present time, seventeen of 
which are English, five belong to other Protestant countries 
in Europe, and thirteen are American. From 30 mission- 
aries in 1850, the company has grown to 925 in 1887, of 
whom 449 are men, 318 wives of missionaries, and 158 sin- 
gle women. There are 125 ordained native helpers, and 
1,365 unordained. There are 79 medical missionaries in 
China, of whom 27 are women. A distinctively medical 
journal has just been started, which is connected with the 
recently established Medical Missionary Association of Chi- 
na. In 1830 there were 10 converts; in 1853, 351; in 
1863, 1,974; in 1868, 5,734; in 1872, 8,000; in 1877, 13,- 
035; in 1881, 19,660; in 1884, 26,287; in 1886, about 30,- 



Missions, 



177 



000. So that within twelve years the communicants have 
more than trebled their numbers. In one mission alone — 
a mission of the Church of England — in the province of 
Tuh-Kien, there are some two thousand baptized members. 
It is safe to say that the Church in China doubles its mem- 
bership every seven years, and at the present rate of increase, 
in one hundred years the entire Empire will have been con- 
verted to Christianity. 

Dr. Williams, who has been thirty-two years in China, is 
even more hopeful, and thinks that half a century more of 
Christian missions will evangelize, and even Christianize, the 
Empire. Mr. Burlingame testifies that intelligent men there 
put no faith in the popular religions ; and Dr. Bartlett vent- 
ures the prophecy that this " Gibraltar of pagandom may 
become its Waterloo.'' 

But, it is said, men and money have been going to China 
for forty or fifty years, and the results have been wholly 
disproportioned to the outlay. When men so talk, they for- 
get that China is a mammoth Empire having a population 
of three hundred and fifty millions of people, and that in 
all heathen countries a vast deal of preparatory work, of 
sapping, and mining, and drilling must be done. Only frag- 
ments of the vast population of China have as yet even 
come in contact with the gospel. Each of the provinces of 
Kan-Suh and Kivei-Chan has only three missionaries for 
its three millions ; Shen-Si has ten missionaries for ten mill- 
ions ; Yun-Nan has four missionaries for six millions. In 
these four provinces together, nearly four times as large as 
Great Britain and Ireland, with twenty-two millions of 
people, there are only twenty Protestant missionaries. We 
are much like children playing at gardening, who plant 
their seed one day and go out the next and dig them up to 
see if they have sprouted. We are tco impatient — too eager 
for numerical results. If Robert Morrison could wait sev- 
12 



178 



China, the Middle Kingdom. 



en years for his first convert; or the London Missionary 
Society ten years in Madagascar, and thirty years in the 
Madras Presidency without any, and fifteen years in Tahiti 
for its first convert; or the Baptists twenty-one years for 
twenty-one converts among the Teloogoos, surely the Church 
can wait for God to work in China. During all these years 
the faithful missionaries there have been drilling into the 
hard rock of heathenism, storing here and there the dyna- 
mite, and preparing for the explosion which will come by 
and by. It took years of work for the Chinese to under- 
stand what the missionaries were there for, and it is no 
small thing that they have come to understand their work, 
and to know something of the great doctrines of Christian- 
ity. It has taken years of toil and prayer to get this hea- 
then ration into a receptive condition ; and even though, like 
the disciples, the devoted workers have toiled all the night 
and taken nothing, what matters it if they have done their 
duty, and if, in the glad morning of fruition, which will 
surely dawn, the Master shall come and so bless their nets 
that they shall capture a nation in a day? 

Besides, are we to gauge our duty by results? Is it not 
putting the whole missionary question on entirely too low a 
basis to only continue to send men and money for the evan- 
gelization of the world as the results realize our desires or 
expectation ? As in every thing else, so in this we are to 
do our duty and leave the results with God. The Church 
has everywhere been clamorous for large results in the 
mission-field, and unfortunately in some instances mission- 
aries have yielded to this demand, for they are only hu- 
man, and have colored their pictures somewhat too highly. 
While the Church should adopt the best possible method of 
mission-work, and as far as practicable avoid all errors, 
it should vigorously press the battle at every point, and 
trust that God will give the victory in his own good time. 



Missions. 



179 



The only question to settle is as to the duty of giving the 
gospel to the heathen; and, recognizing as binding upon 
every Christian the command of our Lord to " Go into all 
the world and preach the gospel to every creature/' we are 
to do all in our power to obey that command and " Go or 
Send." If the Church is using wrong methods, substitute 
proper plans; if mistakes are being made, correct them; 
but in the name of our Master let us " go forward " into 
the deep waters of heathendom and no longer merely play 
at Missions. If Christians at home who close their hearts 
and shut their purses because, forsooth, there have not been 
as many converts in China as they think there ought to 
have been, could have stood with me on the summit of the 
great Suchow pagoda and looked over the great plain, 
where were clustered five million heathens worshiping in 
two hundred idolatrous temples, and where were only six 
missionaries trying to bring that vast, cold heathen mass 
into the warmth and vitality of the gospel; if they could 
have threaded with me the narrow lanes of the great city 
of Canton, w T ith its two millions of inhabitants, where thou- 
sands have never even heard of Christ, and are buried in 
bestiality and sin; if they could go into crowded Shang- 
hai with its filth and squalor, its poverty and vice, its su- 
perstition and idolatry; they could no more withhold sym- 
pathy and money from the cause of Missions than they could 
refuse a crust of bread to a starving man. 

But the results have been by no means such as to weak- 
en the faith of the Church, either in missionary fields in 
general or in China in particular. In 1883-4 the Prot- 
estant Churches of Europe and America, with one hundred 
and nineteen thousand four hundred and thirty-one minis- 
ters and twenty-eight million seventy-four thousand one 
hundred and sixteen communicants, had a growth of one 
hundred and fifty-five thousand five hundred and fifty- 



180 



China, the Middle Kingdom. 



three members — a percentage of 5.1. These Churches 
maintain one hundred and one Foreign Missionary Socie- 
ties. In the foreign field they have two thousand nine 
hundred and eight ordained missionaries, and two thou- 
sand three hundred and sixty-two ordained natives. These, 
with seven hundred and sixty-nine thousand two hun- 
dred and one native communicants, made a gain during 
the year of one hundred and twenty-seven thousand one 
hundred and forty-nine, or 19.11 per cent. In the home 
fields the converts averaged 1.3 to each minister; in the for- 
eign field, 24.5 to each ordained laborer! These figures are 
astounding, and, according to the logic of the opposers of 
of Missions, would close every home Church and send every 
preacher to labor among the heathen, where he could have 
large returns for his w r ork. 

The Methodist Episcopal Church, South, resolved at the 
first annual meeting of the Board of Managers of the Mis- 
sionary Society, held April 4, 1846, on " the establishment 
of a mission in the Chinese Empire." Rev. Charles Taylor, 
M.D., and Rev. Benjamin Jenkins were appointed to that 
work, and on April 24, 1848, they sailed with their fami- 
lies from Boston "in the little ship ' Cleone/ " for Shang- 
hai. Dr. Taylor landed at Shanghai in September, 1848, 
but Mr. Jenkins was detained at Hong Kong by the illness 
of his wife, and did not reach there until May, 1849. These 
two faithful men planted the mission of the M. E. Church, 
South, in China, being re-enforced in 1852-3 by Cunnyng- 
ham, Kelley, Belton, and Lambuth. Mr. Belton's health 
failed, and, returning to this country, he died March 17, 
1856, less than a month after his arrival in New York. In 
1859 Young J. Allen and L. M. Wood were sent out. 
Soon after this the civil war broke out in the United States, 
and the China Mission of the Southern Methodist Church be- 
came almost entirely disorganized. Lambuth and Allen 



Missions. 



181 



only were left in the field, and, cut off irom all supplies at 
home, they supported themselves by their own labor. The 
war over, an impoverished Church could do little for sev- 
eral years for Foreign Missions. But God prospered the 
Church ; the interest in the China Mission revived ; Parker, 
Eeid, and others were sent out ; the work grew, and there 
are now in the field nine missionaries under the Parent 
Board and nine under the Woman's Board, occupying three 
stations and eight out-stations. Last November (1886) 
Bishop Wilson visited this mission and organized it into 
the China Mission Conference. The report of the Commit- 
tee on the State of the Church at that Conference showed 
sixty-seven weekly appointments, with an average attend- 
ance of over fifty, making about one hundred and seventy- 
five thousand people to whom our missionaries preach during 
the year. The total value of the property of the Parent 
Board is $107,300; of the Woman's Board, $28,200. 

The Methodist Episcopal Church is doing a grand work 
in China, and has a mission station eight miles from the 
Great Wall and within sight of it, and only thirty miles 
from the birthplace of Confucius. They have two Annual 
Conferences in China, with a total membership of about four 
thousand. The Foochow Conference, which has received 
from the home funds large grants for native agency, and 
has grown to its present size, in a good degree, by the la- 
bors of native agents, last year organized a foreign mission 
for Corea, and is supporting two men in that field. It is a 
remarkable fact that the first knowledge of the gospel 
which was carried to Corea was carried by Japanese and 
Chinese converts. 

The China Inland Mission, which was founded by Dr. 
J. Hudson Taylor, a Baptist missionary, thirty-three years 
ago, has about two hundred workers and stations in thir- 
teen provinces in the north and west of China, one being 



182 



China, the Middle Kingdom. 



on the borders of Burrnah. This mission is conducted 
wholly on faith principles, has no home board and no reg- 
ular source of income, though in 1884 its income from free- 
will offerings was nearly one hundred thousand dollars. 
The missionaries dress in native costume, wear the pigtail, 
live among the natiyes, and like them, and are dependent 
for support wholly on those among whom they labor, and 
voluntary contributions from the home Churches. The 
mission is undenominational, organizes no churches, and is 
composed of a body of self-sacrificing, devoted men, who 
are doing a valuable work in leavening the masses and 
diffusing a general knowledge of Christianity, though their 
labors lack continuity and permanency. We met one of 
them at Shanghai who was driven from his work during 
the riots in Northern China, and from whom we derived 
much valuable information in regard to their methods. 
From him we gained some interesting facts regarding a 
Jewish colony which settled in Central China several thou- 
sand years ago. The descendants of the early immigrants 
are still there, and have the old traditions of their race 
with some semblance of the old worship. Among other 
things, they sacrifice a kid every morning. They had never 
heard of the destruction of the temple or the overthrow of 
Jerusalem or the atonement of Christ, until Christian mis- 
sionaries taught it to their children. 

Protestant missions have had a large share in opening 
China to foreign intercourse, and in initiating every good 
enterprise which has been set on foot for the welfare of the 
Chinese within the last forty years. They have also had 
very much to do in creating a religious and secular litera- 
ture, by which to communicate to the Chinese the treasures 
of Western religion and science. 

Before concluding this chapter on Missions, it may not 
be amiss to say a word or two about salaries and how the 



Missions. 



183 



missionaries live. The objection is frequently raised that 
missionaries live in better houses and draw larger salaries 
than is necessary or expedient. In regard to the first ob- 
jection, one must go among the people with whom the mis- 
sionaries labor, see their squalor and dirt, become sick with 
the thousand disagreeable odors that greet his olfactories at 
every step, and faint with the disgusting scenes that meet 
his eyes on every side, to see the absolute necessity for a 
home where some of the refinements and comforts of life can 
be found, and where all these repulsive things can be shut 
out. If the missionary had no such place where he could 
recruit his strength and restore his physical and mental 
tone, he would soon become utterly unfitted for his work, 
and neither mind nor body could endure the strain. It 
should be remembered that a preacher in America can find 
at the houses of his friends and parishioners that which his 
own home may sometimes lack, but this is not the case 
either in China or in most mission-fields. If the tired and 
jaded worker has nothing sweet and refreshing within the 
sacred precincts of his ow T n home, they are not to be found, 
and his spiritual nature w T ill starve, and erelong brain and 
body will refuse to discharge their proper functions. So 
that to do the best w T ork, and even to do his work at all, 
the missionary must have a pleasant and comfortable home 
to which he can retreat. 

Perhaps this may be better understood if I give a chap- 
ter from my own experience. While in Shanghai, I went 
out one day with Miss Haygood, and we walked through 
several narrow*, malodorous Chinese streets, stopping at a 
number of native houses. On the last miserable lane of a 
street down which we came, the houses on one side were 
built over a vile canal, where the refuse and accumulated 
filth of the entire neighborhood were thrown, and the fetid 
odors which were constantly rising were sickening beyond 



184 



China, the Middle Kingdom. 



expression. At almost every step we encountered the roost 
repulsive sights, shocking alike to the delicacy of woman 
and the refinement of man. When at last we reached the 
in closure around the Ladies' Home, and, passing through 
the great gates, shut out the Chinese sights and sounds, I 
gave a great sigh of relief and said to the noble woman who, 
hearing the cry of heathen China, had left the refinements 
of her beautiful Southern city for all this hideous impulsive- 
ness: "Thank God, Miss Haygood, that you have such a 
refuge from all that mass of sin and corruption ! " " If I did 
not have such a place," said she, " where there is a breath 
of home, I could not stand it." 

With regard to the question of salary, I am satisfied that 
it would be impossible for the missionaries to live comfort- 
ably on less than they now receive. And to be properly 
equipped for their arduous work, it is important that they 
have such food as they have been accustomed to at home. 
But some faithful pastor at home who is only getting five 
or six hundred dollars may say, " Why should the mission- 
aries receive twelve hundred dollars, while I only get six 
hundred ? Is living so much higher in China than in Amer- 
ica?" Perhaps the mere matter of food is no higher, take 
it all together, in China than at home; but there are several 
other points to be considered. In the first place, the mis- 
sionaries are entirely cut off from all perquisites and gifts. 
So far from receiving a marriage fee, when they marry a 
couple they are expected to make a present. Sometimes a 
popular pastor at home will receive one or two hundred 
dollars per annum in marriage fees, and his flock will almost 
supply him with his provisions. But the missionaries re- 
ceive nothing whatever from these sources; have no dis- 
counts made them at the stores, but, on the contrary, usually 
are made to pay a premium to the servant who makes the 
purchases, and must pay the cash for every article pur- 



Missions. 



185 



chased. Then, for every little luxury or extra comfort, for 
books and newspapers, furniture, telegrams, postage, etc., 
the most extravagant prices must be paid. For example, 
all canned goods are fifty per cent, higher than at home. 
Butter is fifty cents per pound, while all articles of ladies' 
attire, table-cloths, napkins, blankets, domestics, linen, med- 
icines, etc., are very much higher. Telegrams from Su- 
chow to Shanghai, only seventy-five miles, are twenty cents 
per word. Postage on letters is five cents from Shanghai 
to the United States, and five cents extra must be paid on 
every letter to and from Suchow and Xantziang. Postage 
on papers is one dollar and four cents per annum from Amer- 
ica. Daily papers are thirty-two dollars per annum. I 
asked one of the missionaries how his salary compared with 
what he received at home, and he said that six hundred 
dollars on a circuit in Georgia would go further than his 
twelve hundred dollars in depreciated currency in Suchow. 

The magnitude of the work before these faithful mission- 
aries may be gauged when we remember that if the Chinese 
were scattered over the whole earth, they w 7 ould so occupy 
the world that every third man we should meet would be 
a Chinaman, and every third house a Chinese dwelling. 
So numerous are these people, and so powerful the influence 
that they exert over the whole Eastern world, that the 
statement has been made that, after subtracting the Mo- 
hammedan and the nominally Christian nations, the claims 
of China are about equal to those of all the rest of the 
heathen world put together. The missionaries who are la- 
boring in that vast field are but as Gideon and his lamp- 
bearers; but the walls are shaking, and they will yet surely 
fall, and the day is coming when China shall be conquered 
for Christ. 



III. 



THE ISLANDS OF THE TROPICS. 

I LOOK forth 
Over the boundless blue, where joyously 
The bright crests of innumerable waves 
Glance to the sun at once, as when the hands 
Of a great multitude are upward flung 
In acclamation. I behold the ships 
Gliding from cape to cape, from isle to isle, 
Or stemming toward far lands, or hastening home 
From the old world. It is thy friendly breeze 
That bears them, with the riches of the land, 
And treasure of dear lives, till, in the port, 
The shouting seaman climbs and furls the sail. 

— Bryant, 
(187) 



I. 

Singapore and Peuaug. 



Y examining a map of Asia, it will be seen that the 
southern extremity of the continent is a long, nar- 
row peninsula called Malay, and just at the foot of the 
Malay Peninsula, and separated from it by a narrow strait 
not more than half a mile wide, is the little island of 
Singapore. In sailing from Canton to Calcutta, you must 
sail two thousand miles south to Singapore, and then turn 
and sail two thousand miles north to Calcutta; so that 
the traveler journeys over two sides of an equilateral tri- 
angle. In going around this Malay Peninsula, the time 
and distance are almost equal to those of two trips across 
the Atlantic. But it is a pleasant voyage, though a little 
tedious, and all travelers around the globe must needs pass 
by Singapore, even if it is the jumping-off place. It is the 
one inevitable point in Asia as San Francisco is in America. 
It is almost directly on the opposite side of the globe from 
New York. Before reaching Singapore, all our letters 
went by way of Japan and San Francisco; after passing 
Singapore they will go by way of England. 

This island is about twenty-five miles long and half as 
wide, and is another one of the possessions of Great Britain 
in the far East, having been purchased from the Sultan of 
Jahore, Malay, in 1819. England has dominated the south 
of Asia, and preserves her power in the East by a line of 
outposts from the Mediterranean to the Orient, commenc- 
ing at Gibraltar, thence to Malta, Aden, Ceylon, Penang, 

(189) 




190 



The Islands of the Tropics. 



Singapore, and Hong Kong. As we sailed southward to- 
ward the East Indies, there was a very perceptible change 
in the temperature, and we realized that we were nearing 
the equator. The calm sea, the still air, the heavy, sultry 
atmosphere, all indicated that we were in the low latitudes, 
and when at last we reached Singapore, we were only forty 
miles north of the earth's great central belt. 

In all our long journey we found nothing that interested 
us more than this tropical island, the Queen of the East 
Indies, which might well be called the ' ' Island of Palms," 
and which is one charming park throughout its whole ex- 
tent. The luxurious tropical vegetation ; the tall, stately 
palms on every side; the bamboo thickets; the jungly 
swamps; the low, thatched huts; the tawny, naked natives; 
the swarms of Malay boys in their little canoes diving for 
coins, and the white European bungalows peering out from 
under a dense mass of foliage, made a picture so strange 
and new that it will always remain in my memory. 

Lying in the very lap of the tropics, the climate is al- 
ways hot and moist, and in common with the other islands 
of the Malay Archipelago, the animal and vegetable pro- 
ductions are different from those in any other portion of 
the world. The most precious spices, the most brilliant 
flowers, the richest fruits, the gaudiest feathered birds, and 
the most ferocious animals are here seen at home, and a new 
and distinctive type of man also appears, such as you find 
nowhere else. 

Our vessel lay for two days at Singapore, during which 
we had ample time to see all the objects of interest. The 
population of the island is about one hundred and sixty 
thousand, made up of ninety thousand Chinamen, forty- 
five thousand Malays, thirteen thousand Tamils, two thou- 
sand Cingalese, five thousand Europeans and Eurasians, 
and the rest of various nationalities. It was the most cos- 



Singapore and Penang. 



191 



mopolitan place that we have yet found, and no less than 
five different dialects are spoken, while Malays, Tamils, 
Sikhs, Parsees, Chitties, Japanese, Hindoos, Chinese, Portu- 
guese, French, Dutch, and English jostle each other on the 
streets and form one conglomerate population. The Tamils 
are a dark race from the south of India, and are largely 
the burden-bearers of this part of the East, while the Sikhs 
are from the Punjab, in the north of India, and are a tall, 
handsome race of people, whom we first saw as policemen 
on the streets of Shanghai. The Chitties are also Indians, 
and are the Jews and money-lenders of the East, while the 
Parsees are fire-worshipers from Persia. The Malays and 
Tamils wear little or no clothing; and as light a costume 
as the Georgia Major's uniform, consisting of a paper collar 
and a pair of spurs, is the fashionable one in this climate. 
If " Miss Flora McFlimsy of Madison Square " had lived 
in Singapore, the fact that she had "nothing to wear" 
would not have troubled her, as she would have been in 
the fashion. We saw scores of children eight and ten 
years old whose most elaborate toilet consisted of a pair of 
bracelets and a pair of ear-rings, and the great majority of 
the men had not a vestige of clothing except a loin-cloth. 
The women were somewhat better clad, though they had as 
little as decency would allow. But they were all pro- 
fusely decorated with jewelry, and if some of our ladies 
could see them I am inclined to think it would induce 
them to forever eschew ear-rings. These ear-rings are of 
immense size, and sometimes the ears are pierced in three or 
four places, with an ear-ring pendent from each hole. I 
counted six ear-rings in the ear of one girl who was just in 
her teens. But the nose-rings which most of them wear are 
worse still, and are as disfiguring as any thing intended 
for ornament can possibly be. 

Chambers states in his Encyclopedia that tigers fre- 



192 



The Islands of the Tropics. 



quently cross the strait from the main-land, and on an 
average carry off one native a day. I asked a gentle- 
man about this, and he laughed very heartily and said that 
a tiger was almost as rare a sight in Singapore as it would 
be in America, and that perhaps one a year was seen in 
some part of the island. 

The days and nights of Singapore are the same length 
the year round, the sun always rising and setting within 
five minutes of 6 o'clock; while the temperature is also 
very equable, being about 70° in the shade, winter and 
summer. But in the sun it quickly mounts up to 140° or 
150°. The sun has fearful power in these low latitudes, 
and a few moments' exposure to it without proper covering 
on the head will produce coup de soleil, terminating in many 
cases fatally. We have been obliged to provide ourselves 
with solar topees, made of pith, which are as ugly as they 
are comfortable. 

It being Sunday on which we landed at Singapore, we 
started out in search of a church, and were directed to the 
English Cathedral, which we found to be a handsome 
Gothic building, surrounded by ample grounds. Sunday- 
school was in session, and from the rector we learned that 
there was an American Methodist Church in the city. By 
inquiring our way we soon reached a beautiful, classic look- 
ing structure, where we found a large congregation collected 
and services in progress. We heard an earnest, evangelical 
sermon from the pastor, Bev. W. F. Oldham, to whom we 
introduced ourselves at the conclusion of the services. We 
received a warm Methodist welcome from him and his co- 
laborer, Rev. Geo. A. Bond, and at t-heir cordial invitation 
spent the evening and night with them. To Mr. Oldham 
we are indebted for some valuable statistics of the Singa- 
pore Missions. 

The Presbyterians have a self-supporting English Church 



Singapore and Penang. 



193 



with a membership of about seventy, and a Chinese Mission 
consisting of four small churches with an aggregate mem- 
bership of one hundred and ten. The Church of England 
has two Chinese Missions with a membership of one hun- 
dred and sixty, and a Tamil organization of about fifty. 
The Plymouth Brethren, as they are called, who are wholly 
independent and support their mission on the faith princi- 
ple, have about fifty Chinese members. The latest comers 
are the Methodist Episcopal Church of the United States, 
who begun their work early in 1885, sending out the Rev. 
W. F. Oldham, of the Michigan Conference. The Singa- 
pore Mission is really a mission of the South India Confer- 
ence, to which Conference Mr. Oldham has been trans- 
ferred. He began with nothing, and in less than two years 
has organized a self-supporting church of forty-one members, 
has built a beautiful house of worship in a central location, 
and has erected within a few feet of the church a large 
school and parsonage building, where he has a fine Chinese 
boarding and day school. A remarkable feature of this 
work is that this last building has been erected at a cost of 
four thousand dollars with money subscribed by the Chinese 
merchants of Singapore. They wished Mr. Oldham to 
teach their boys, and built the house for this purpose. The 
Rev. George A. Bond came out a month ago to assist Mr. 
Oldham, and Miss Battie is also a member of the mission. 

We were greatly interested in the luxuriant tropical veg- 
etation of this island of palms, and saw many trees here 
whose names have been familiar to us since our school-boy 
days. Mr. Oldham pointed out to us from his front door 
the penang, or betel-nut tree, a tall, stately palm which 
shoots up without a branch or a leaf for seventy-five feet, 
when the great leaves begin; the cocoa-nut, very much like 
the betel-nut, though not so straight or tall ; the plantain, or 
banana, another palm ; the low, bushy bread-fruit tree with 



194 



The Islands of the Tropics. 



its large leaves and orange-shaped fruit; the dunan, with 
its peculiar, spiky-looking fruit; the guava, which bears 
something like a plum, except that it is full of little seed ; 
the mango, whose fruit is as large as ordinary apples — dark 
brown outside, brilliant red inside, with a white pulp which 
melts in the mouth ; and the teak, the most valuable timber 
of the tropics, which is used very largely for ship-building. 
Afterward, in our drives about the island, as well as in the 
Botanical Gardens and Water- works Park, both of which 
are beautiful places, we saw many other specimens of the 
flora of the tropics. One of the most striking of these is the 
Traveler's Palm, about thirty feet high and with long palm- 
leaves, fan-shaped, the circle of the leaves being nearly fifty 
feet in circumference. The stems of these leaves are hollow 
and full of fresh and wholesome water, which often fur- 
nishes refreshment to the thirsty traveler. The pine-apple, 
which is very abundant and cheap at Singapore, and of 
most delicious flavor, is a small plant not more than three 
feet high, with long, sword-like leaves two feet in length 
and an inch wide, tapering to a point. It looks much like 
a familiar plant at home called the " flaming sword." The 
mangosteen, about the size of a walnut with a thick, green 
rind, inclosing a white, pulpy-looking substance, a great 
favorite with Europeans; the rambosteen, a peculiar pale 
prickly fruit with an acrid taste; the jack-fruit, a great, 
gross-looking fruit as large as a pumpkin, which is eaten 
only by the natives, and which hangs from a large ever- 
green resembling the oak; the pomello, which is like an im- 
mense orange; and the custard apple, which slightly resem- 
bles the mango, are some other fruits which nature has 
lavished on the tropics. But, with the exception of the 
pine-apple and the banana, I do not think that these trop- 
ical fruits can compare with our own products of the tem- 
perate zone, and, like the songless birds and odorless flowers 



Singapore and Penang. 195 



of the same latitude, they seem to lack something which our 
fruits have. 

We drove out to the gardens of Whampoa, one of the 
show places of Singapore, and saw nothing remarkable 
there except his shrubbery, which he has trained to resemble 
birds and animals, and the immense water-lilies, whose 
leaves were fully six feet in diameter. 

From Singapore our course lay through the Malay Archi- 
pelago to Penang. This archipelago, better known as the 
East Indies, consists of a number of islands, the largest of 
which are Borneo, Sumatra, and Java. It lies between 
Asia and Australia, belonging to neither and yet belonging 
to both. Each island appears to have its own distinct fauna 
and flora. Sumatra is full of tigers ; in Borneo there is not 
one. In two islands, separated only by a narrow strait, 
there are two as distinct animal and vegetable kingdoms as 
those of the United States and Brazil. One group belongs 
to Asia, the other to Australia. Little is known of either 
Borneo or Sumatra, though the first is the third largest 
island in the world. Much of it has never been explored, 
and it is said that in the interior there is a race of wild men 
called " Dyaks," who live in trees and are cannibals. It is 
over one thousand miles long, and has more square miles than 
Great Britain and Ireland together. The Island of Sumatra 
is a world in itself. In the interior, unexplored, are differ- 
ent races, speaking a dozen different languages or dialects. 
It is a dense jungle and the home of wild beasts — the tiger, 
rhinoceros, and wild elephant. Just now, and for over 
twenty years, the Dutch have been trying to take possession 
of it, and have been waging a general warfare with the 
natives at Acheen, on the western extremity of the island. 
But they will never be able to conquer it, and indeed they 
hold all their possessions in the East Indies by a very frail 
tenure. Although they have owned Java for two hundred 



196 



The Islands of the Tropics. 



and fifty years, the natives of the island are very restless 
under their yoke, and are liable at any time to cast it off. 

These islands constitute a vast, rich empire, and only need 
development and civilization to become of great importance 
in furnishing the world with their products. The peninsula 
of Malay, like them, is largely unknown, and much of it 
has never been explored. There are about fifty million 
Malays in the peninsula and on the Malay Islands, and 
twenty million of these are in Java alone. There are about 
three million on the peninsula in a state of slavery. At 
Penang, from the deck of our ship, we could look over into 
the Malay Peninsula, not more than half a mile distant, 
and see the black, naked natives among the straw huts and 
under the cocoa-nut palms on the shore. All along the 
sandy beach the heavy timber, filled with a tropical mass 
of vines, came down almost into the waves. 

It is somewhat remarkable that there is scarcely a mis- 
sionary among these Malays. India on the one hand and 
China and Japan on the other seem to have absorbed the 
energies of the Church, and the Malays have been neglect- 
ed. Not even in Singapore is there any work being done 
among the Malays, and Mr. Oldham told me that in the 
whole island there was not a single adult Malay member 
of a Christian Church — possibly there were one or two 
women. Here is a great work for the Church to do — a 
new field for her to enter. Surely while such efforts are 
being put forth for the conversion of India, China, and Ja- 
pan, something should be done for this heathen people who 
occupy one of the richest and most productive sections of 
the globe. The majority of them are Mohammedans, al- 
though there are also a great many Buddhists among them. 

It is a sail of a day and a half along the Malay coast and 
past Sumatra and other smaller islands of the archipelago 
to Penang, a small island which is also the property of Great 



Singapore and Penang. 197 



Britain, and which lies about a mile and a half from the 
Province of Wellesley and free State of Pera, on the main- 
land, from which it is separated by the Strait of Malacca. 
The Province of Wellesley is subject to the British crown, 
as are several other Malay States of which England has tak- 
en possession. The fact is that England is very much of a 
cormorant, and snatches up every little piece of land or 
island to which she takes a fancy, regardless of the rights of 
muum and tuum. 

Penang originally belonged to the Malay Kingdom, but 
in 1785 it was given to an English seaca-ptain as a mar- 
riage portion with the King of Keddah's daughter, and by 
him transferred to the East India Company. It has greatly 
increased in population and importance since it became the 
property of Captain Light. It is about the size of Singa- 
pore, and has a population of ninety thousand nine hundred 
and fifty-one, divided as follows: Europeans and Ameri- 
cans, six hundred and seventy-four; military, one hundred 
and ninety-four; floating, one hundred and thirty-four; 
Eurasians, thirteen hundred and fifty-two; Chinese, forty- 
five thousand one hundred and thirty-five ; Malays, twenty- 
one thousand seven hundred and twent}^-four ; Tamils, four- 
teen thousand two hundred and seventy-one ; Japanese, five 
thousand four hundred and sixty-two ; Straits born Chinese, 
ten thousand four hundred and seventy-seven. Being only 
five degrees from the equator, it is a veritable Gehenna for 
heat. The average temperature is eighty-nine degrees in 
the shade; seventy-five at night, and one hundred and fifty- 
two in the sun. Although it was the middle of winter when 
we were there, it was insufferably hot and dusty, and the 
only relief would have been that suggested by Sydney 
Smith, " to take off our flesh and sit in our bones." 

Bayard Taylor calls Penang " the most beautiful island 
in the world/' but, while it is a mass of the richest tropical 



198 



The Islands of the Tropics, 



vegetation set in the midst of tropical seas, I saw nothing 
to justify such an encomium. The cocoa-nut grows here 
with great luxuriance, the fruit being of enormous size, sur- 
passing any thing in the w T ay of cocoa-nuts that I have ever 
seen, while the leaves attain the length of fifteen or twenty 
feet. The water of the green cocoa-nut is very refreshing 
and wholesome, and in these tropical lands, where the water 
is generally not fit to drink, it is a great blessing. During 
a drive to a beautiful little mountain water-fall five miles 
from the city, and about the only " show place " in Penang, 
being thirsty, we gave a few coppers to a native Tamil to 
climb one of the tall palms and bring us down a brown co- 
coa-nut from a cluster in the top. These stately palms, the 
glory of the tropics, are as destitute of limbs as the mast of 
a ship, but at the height of fifty or seventy-five feet each 
tree is crowned with a drooping mass of immense leaves 
amid which nestle the great nuts. The native ran up the 
smooth tree like a squirrel, sat astride one of the leaves 
while he pulled the nut, and then brought it down, holding 
it by the stem in his mouth. 

We found only one mission on this island, beside the 
Church of England, which is of course supported by the 
Government, and the Catholics. The former has a Tamil 
church with a native pastor. The Kev. William McDon- 
ald, of the Plymouth Brethren, a faith mission and unde- 
nominational, has been here twenty-one years. He is a 
faithful, earnest man, and has done great good among the 
Chinese and Tamils, his mission being chiefly among the 
former. He has an organized church of one hundred 
among the Europeans and Chinese, some good mission 
buildings, and several out-stations. But he gave similar tes- 
timony to that which we had received at Singapore, and did 
not know of a single Christian Malay either in Penang or 
on the peninsula. 




From Penang you sail fourteen hundred miles through 
the steaming Indian Ocean with heavy clouds and frequent 
tropical showers. You are only three degrees north of the 
equator, and are sailing toward India, the mysterious land 
of ancient faiths and civilizations which were old when 
Home was young. You are in the zone of calms, which, as 
Coleridge's "Ancient Mariner " says, is a terror only to sail- 
ing-vessels ; and only the monsoons blow and help the cease- 
less throbbing of your steamer's engine. Day by day the 
sun rises and sinks at the same hour, and at night the sky 
overhead is all aglow with celestial fires, while at times the 
sea is luminous with the light which she carries in her own 
bosom. These Southern seas are full of those marine in- 
sects which shine like glow-w r orms in the dark, and as you 
lean over the stern of the ship you can see a long track of 
light left in the phosphorescent waters. The moon walks 
majestically along her pathway among the stars, and the 
glorious Southern Cross blazes in beauty near the horizon 
on your left. You are sailing over the romantic Indian 
Ocean of which you have read and dreamed a thousand 
times in your childhood, and, according to Professor Win- 
chell, you are just above the submerged cradle of the human 
race, and thus for four charming days you sail under de- 
lightful skies and over a sleeping ocean, until you come to 
where 

The spicy breezes 
Blow soft o'er Ceylon's isle. 



II. 

Keylon, the Land of fearo arj SpiGQS. 



IXTY miles east of Southern India, and washed by the 
Indian Ocean on the south and the Bay of Bengal on 
the north, is the " rustling paradise " of Ceylon, the most 
beautiful island in the world, and the home of the cinna- 
mon, the spice, the nutmeg, the palm, the coffee-plant, the 
bamboo, and all the other luxuriant flora of the tropics. 
Belted as it is with a double girdle of golden sands and 
waving palm-trees, and set like one of its own pearls in the 
midst of tropical seas, no language can do it justice, and we 
might well deem it a bit of Paradise which God had left to 
show what earth would have been but for the fall. The in- 
terior is a vast green garden of plain and highland, valley 
and mountain, with snatches of scenery more beautiful than 
that of Switzerland, and happy valleys more charming than 
those of Rasselas. I have never imagined any thing half so 
beautiful as the green terraces of the paddy fields on the 
hill-sides between Colombo and Kandy, nor have I ever 
seen grander mountain scenery, even among our own 
Kockies, than is to be found in this fair " Land of Lanka." 
It is said that almost every thing grows here known to the 
botanical world, and in the Gardens of Peradenia, at Kan- 
dy, you may sit on a bench with the upas-tree on one side 
and the cinchona-tree on the other, while twenty varieties 
of palms are before you and a grove of mahogany-trees is 
at your back. In those same gardens, one hundred and 
fifty acres in extent, I rested upon the great gnarled roots 
(200) 




The Islands of the Tropics. 



201 



of a splendid specimen of the Ficus Elastica (India-rubber 
tree), and saw but a little distance from me the coca (from 
which the new anaesthetic cocaine is made), the nutmeg- 
tree with its spicy nut in its coat of scarlet mace, the pep- 
per-vine which yields the black pepper of commerce, clus- 
ters of brown cocoa-nuts on stately palms, and a dozen va- 
rieties of strange fruits whose names I had never heard 
before. And so in this wonderful land, where every hut is 
embowered in palm-fronds, and where the rays of a blazing 
equatorial sun are tempered by delightful sea-breezes, you 
may drift along under arbors of feathery bamboos, broad- 
leaved bread-fruit trees, talipot and areca palms, cocoa-nut 
groves, and stretches of rice-fields, cinnamon and sugar-cane, 
and have all your dreams of life in the tropics fully real- 
ized. Or you may stretch yourself upon one of the benches 
that are scattered along the beautiful " Galle Face " beach, 
and, with the murmuring sea at your feet and the hum of 
the distant city behind you, hire a willing Cinghalese boy 
for a copper to bring you a fresh cocoa-nut; or, if you 
choose, you may buy a delicious pine-apple, as long as your 
arm, for two cents, and a cart-load of bananas for a rupee. 

Is it any wonder that people living where nature is so 
lavish of her gifts should grow indolent? Some one said at 
Singapore that the cocoa-nut tree and the fishing-rod had 
been the ruin of the Malay. But other peoples of the 
tropics beside the Malays show the baneful effects of being 
able to live without work. However, my observation of 
the people of Ceylon leads me to think that, while the un- 
Christianized portion of them are a good-natured, indolent 
set, they hardly justify good Bishop Heber's sweeping con- 
demnation of being altogether " vile " — save, perhaps, in a 
theological sense, which may have been what he meant. 
By the way, in the Eamayana, one of the early Sanskrit 
epics, it is said that when Havana was reigning in the island 



202 



The Islands of the Tropics. 



of Lanka, the modem Ceylon, his power was so great that 
he made the gods his slaves, and " Vayu, the God of Wind, 
blew gently at Lanka," Did Bishop Heber get his idea of 
the " gentle breezes " blowing " soft o'er Ceylon's isle " from 
this? or is it only a rather striking coincidence? 

It is but natural that a people living amid such beauti- 
ful and romantic surroundings should have poetical le- 
gends and traditions. One of these is crystallized in the 
name commonly given the inhabitants of Ceylon, and was 
doubtless founded on fact. The story is that in the year 
543 B.C. Prince Wijjeys, the son of an Indian king, 
Seinghavahn, w r ho lived and ruled on the banks of the 
Ganges, w T as for his wicked and vicious conduct banished 
from his father's court, and drifted, with seven hundred 
of his followers, to this island. The name Seinghavahn 
means "Lion descended," and the tradition is that this 
king was the son of a lion. Wijjeys married a native prin- 
cess, conquered the island, and the descendants of himself 
and his followers, w T ho became the dominant people, were 
called Singhalese or Cingalese — a name which they re- 
tain to this day. The aborigines, whom they found in Cey- 
lon, w 7 ere called YaJckhos, from the Sanskrit Yaksa, to eat, 
they being cannibals. Bemnants of these aborigines, called 
Vedas, are still found in Middle Ceylon, most of whom are 
devil- worshipers. 

Another Singhalese legend accounts for the singular wor- 
ship of monkeys which prevails so extensively in India, and 
indicates that for three thousand years the fortunes of this 
classic little island and of the neighboring peninsula have 
been closely identified. Bama, the son of the Maharajah of 
Ayodhya, who had been unjustly deprived of his " Baj," or 
kingdom, had a beautiful wife named Sita, who was stolen by 
Havana, the ruling Bajah of Ceylon. In great distress, the 
bereaved husband secured the services of armies of monkeys 



Ceylon, the Land of Cinnamon and Spices. 203 



and bears, who had been born on earth as incarnations of 
the gods, to assist him in the holy war which he waged for 
the recovery of his wife. A famous monkey named Hanu- 
man was the commander-in-chief of the armies of monkeys, 
and his prowess and exploits have been the delight of the 
people of India for unrecorded centuries. In almost every 
temple worship is paid to him, and representations of him 
are seen everywhere. Under his command the army of 
monkeys brought rocks from the Himalaya Mountains, and 
built a bridge over the sea between India and Lanka. 
Xerxes's famous bridge of boats for the transportation of 
his army across the Hellespont becomes commonplace in 
comparison with this bridge of stone, sixty miles long, across 
a deep sea. Strangely enough, a rocky causeway runs out 
from the Indian side of the channel, terminating at the 
Island of Ramisserom. A similar causeway runs out from 
the opposite shore of Ceylon and terminates in the Island of 
Manaar, whilst a sandy ridge, known as Adam's Bridge, 
connects Manaar with Ramisserom. This singular natural 
conformation has strengthened the belief in the tradition, 
and the huge blocks or bowlders which are to be found in 
various parts of India are said to have been dropped by the 
monkeys in their attempts to carry them southward for the 
purpose of building the bridge. 

With the help of these strange allies Rama recovered his 
w 7 ife, gained his throne, became the greatest monarch of 
prehistoric India, and has been worshiped for nearly three 
thousand years as an incarnation of Vishnu. 

Ceylon has been subject to the British Crown since 1796, 
though there was a King of Kandy for twenty years after 
that period. But the last King of Kandy was a cruel and 
inhuman despot, who executed his own wife and children, 
and then seized and horribly mutilated some British sub- 
jects who w 7 ere trading at Kandy. War w T as declared in 



204 



The Islands of the Tropics. 



January, 1815; an avenging army seized Kandy and car- 
ried the King a captive to Colombo, whence he was trans- 
ported to the Indian fortress of Vellore, where he died in 
January, 1832. Since then Ceylon has rapidly advanced 
in prosperity and wealth, and in proportion to its size En- 
gland has no more valuable possession. Sir Arthur Ham- 
ilton Gordon is the present Governor, and from all that we 
have seen we judge that he rules wisely and well. Espe- 
cially have we been struck with the strict observance of the 
Sabbath in Colombo, and after our two months' stay in the 
Sabbathless lands of heathendom it was sweet and refresh- 
ing beyond expression to find the stores all closed and the 
streets deserted on Sabbath morning. I could sympa- 
thize with the feelings of a returned missionary, who said 
that the rest and peace of the first Sabbath that he had 
spent in Christian lands for ten years brought tears of grat- 
itude to his eyes. When I compare this island with China 
and Japan I am almost glad that one-sixth of the popula- 
tion of the world bears allegiance to Queen Victoria. 

Ceylon is shaped somewhat like a mango, its greatest 
length being two hundred and seventy-one miles, and its 
greatest breadth one hundred and thirty-seven miles. It 
has an area of twenty-five thousand three hundred and 
sixty-five miles — a little less than Ireland — and a popu- 
lation of 2,763,300, distributed according to religions as 
follows: Christians, 268,000; Buddhists, 1,700,000; Hin- 
doos, 595,000; Mohammedans, 198,000; scattering, 2,300. 
Of the Christians, 208,000 are Catholics, 22,000 Church 
of England, 13,000 Presbyterians and Congregationalists, 
20,000 Wesleyans, and 5,000 Baptists. It will be under- 
stood that this is the population, and not the number of* 
actual communicants. There are 162,270 Christians among 
the Singhalese, and 82,220 among the Tamils. There are 
but 3 Moors, 32 Malays, and 1 Veda in the island who are 
Christians. 



Ceylon, the Land of Cinnamon and Spices, 205 

Buddhism was introduced into Ceylon B.C. 307, and 
has been since that time the controlling religion of the peo- 
ple. In some parts of the island a number of years ago, 
however, many of the natives relinquished the worship of 
Buddha for the worship of devils. The devils are regarded 
as the authors of all temporal evils, and they are worshiped 
in order that these may be averted. When in health the 
worshipers offer gifts of money and rice ; when in sickness 
they either go to the devil-dancers or send offerings, vow- 
ing that in case of recovery they will perform some pecul- 
iar service for his goodness toward them. It is said that 
in the southern part of the island temples to the devil are 
in almost every village, and devil-priests are as numerous 
as Buddhist priests. Children at their birth are dedicated 
to the devil, their parents hoping that they may thus es- 
cape evils. Buddhism both prohibits and encourages this 
worship. We did not see any of it, but conversed with 
gentlemen who did, and they described it as diabolical in 
the extreme. 

The average annual rain-fall of Ceylon is 874 inches, and 
the average temperature is eighty degrees, being about the 
same the year round. There are one hundred and seventy- 
seven miles of railway, the principal road — and only one 
in fact of any importance — being between Colombo and 
Kandy, with a branch running nearly to the hill station of 
Neuralia. 

The Singhalese are a dark-complexioned race of Aryans, 
though lighter than the Tamils, and are a fine-looking set 
of men, especially when Christianized and civilized. The 
coolies and lower classes of the men all go nine-tenths 
naked, the children wholly so, while the women wear as 
few clothes as decency will allow — and their ideas of the 
limits of decency are considerably below those of the Anglo- 
Saxon. The better classes of the men wear a tortoise shell 



206 



The Islands of the Tropics. 



comb, fastening back their long black hair, and a dark coat 
or jacket over a sort of petticoat of white. The Moormen 
go all in white or red and white, while conspicuous every- 
where are the Buddhist priests with their yellow robes so 
draped as to leave bare the right shoulder. 

Nearly all the domestic wants of the Singhalese can be 
supplied by the cocoa-nut tree. He can, and often does, 
build his house entirely of it. He needs no nails, as he can 
use the coir rope made from the outside husk. He makes 
his oil from the kernel; the hard shell supplies him with 
spoons, cups, drinking-vessek, lamps, and water-buckets; 
while if he is thirsty he gets a cocoa-nut and drinks the 
milk, and if he is hungry he eats the meat. Give him a 
cocoa-nut tree on one side, a banana-tree on the other, with 
a bread-fruit tree in front, and he wants nothing more. 

The native Singhalese craft, of which numbers were 
darting hither and thither all over the harbor the morning 
we landed, is a singular one and peculiar to this island. It 
is a mere knife-edge, with just room enough for the fisher- 
man's legs, being kept from capsizing by a balance-log of 
lunnic-wood, braced to the canoe with two bent spars. 
When the breeze freshens, a hand is sent out to squat on 
the log; when it gets rough two are sent out, so that they 
talk of a " one-man gale " or " a two-man gale." The boat 
is propelled by a queer-looking square bit of canvas. We 
started out expecting to try all kinds of land and water 
conveyances, but, as we were not very expert swimmers, we 
concluded not to risk ourselves on these "outriggers," as 
they are called. 

We have also met with a new kind of land conveyance 
here — bullock carts, which are as unique as they are pict- 
uresque. The cart is a two-wheeled basket vehicle with 
a square top, but no side or back curtains. The driver sits 
on the tongue, almost astride the bullock, while there is a 



Ceylon, the Land of Cinnamon and Spices. 207 



seat behind for another passenger. The little Guini bul- 
locks, generally fat and sleek with red or yellow painted 
horns sometimes tipped with silver, are pretty creatures, and 
go trotting along like little ponies, as obedient to bit and 
voice as any well-trained horse. 

Colombo, now the principal sea-port and chief commer- 
cial city of Ceylon, is a handsome city, except in the native 
quarter, with one hundred and twenty thousand inhabitants. 
We found pleasant quarters at the Grand Central Hotel, 
and spent a charming week here and at Kandy, seventy- 
five miles inland, among the mountains. It is difficult to 
tell where Colombo ends and the country begins. We have 
driven for miles along the pebbly beach, through fragrant 
cinnamon-gardens, past forests of lofty palms, beyond long 
stretches of native huts, and still the white villas of the Eu- 
ropeans nestled amid luxuriant tropical foliage in spacious 
" compounds" told us we had not reached the outer bound- 
aries of this unique city of magnificent distances. Fresh 
air and plenty of shade are indispensable to comfort in this 
torrid climate, and hence the suburbs are very extensive and 
go for miles in every direction. 

We found Mr. Morey, the American Consul, as gentle- 
manly and obliging as all the representatives of our Gov- 
ernment have been whom we have met abroad. He kindly 
gave us a note to a Mr. Dennis DeLoysa, the native manager 
of the Mutual Mills of Volkart Bros., and we made a very 
interesting visit to this extensive establishment. Mr. De- 
Loysa is an educated, gentlemanly Singhalese, and seemed 
to take great pleasure in showing us through his mills and 
explaining the various processes by which coffee, cocoa for 
chocolate, cinchona bark, cinnamon, and plumbago, all of 
which are here handled, are prepared for market. Between 
five and six hundred hands are employed, half of whom are 
women, and we stood for some time watching these poor 



208 



The Islands of the Tropics. 



creatures picking out and assorting the grains of coffee for 
seven cents per day. All the coffee fit for foreign market is 
picked out by hand, and the refuse is sold to the natives. 
The sizes are then assorted by a kind of fanning machinery 
and put in bags ready for shipment. 

Abyssinia is generally accepted as the home of the coffee- 
plant, and it also grows wild in the north-west of Ashantee. 
The belt of country suited to the cultivation of coffee is 
comprised between the fifteen degrees north and south of 
the equator, and chiefly on well-watered mountain regions 
from between one thousand to five thousand feet above the 
sea-level. Although the coffee-plant was known in Yemen 
at an early period, it is doubtful whether its use as a stim- 
ulant was discovered before the beginning of the fifteenth 
century. The Arabs introduced it early into India, and be- 
fore the arrival of the Portuguese or Dutch the tree had 
been grown in Ceylon; but the preparation of a beverage 
from its berries was totally unknown to the Singhalese, who 
only employed its tender leaves for their curries, and its 
white flowers for ornamenting their temples and shrines. 
Bruce, the traveler, says the Ethiopians parched the coffee- 
bean like grain, bruised it into powder, and mixed it with 
grease into balls, two or three of which supported a traveler 
for a whole day. The chance discovery of its value as a 
beverage is attributed to an Arab in Yemen about the close 
of the fourteenth century. The United States consumes 
one-third of all the coffee used in the world, being nearly as 
much as the entire Continent of Europe. What tea is to 
England and the East, coffee is to our country. Ceylon 
was formerly a very large coffee-producing country, but, 
owing to the ravages of a fungus on the leaves of the plant, 
cultivation has decreased from nine hundred and eighty- 
eight thousand three hundred and twenty-eight hundred- 
weight in 1874-5 to two hundred thousand hundred-weight 



Ceylon, the Land of Cinnamon and Spices. 209 



in 1885-6. The cultivation of tea is largely taking the place 
of that of coffee. This year thirty-five thousand acres of tea 
are planted, and it is estimated that when these plants are in 
full bearing, a season's shipment will equal ten million 
pounds. Eventually it is probable that Ceylon will have 
one hundred and fifty thousand acres in tea, and an annual 
export of upwards of sixty million pounds. 

The cocoa-berry is assorted much in the same way as 
that of the coffee, and the two plants somewhat resemble 
each other, each usually growing from six to ten feet high. 
The export of cocoa began with ten hundred- weight in 1868, 
and has increased to ten thousand hundred- weight in 1886. 

The increase in the culture of cinchona has been even 
greater. The exportation began with twenty-eight ounces in 
1869, and for 1884 it exceeded eleven million pounds. No 
quinine is manufactured in Ceylon, but the bark is all 
shipped to England and the United States. 

In cinnamon and the products of the palm-tree, Ceylon 
now sends an annual value of from eight hundred thousand 
pounds to a million sterling into the markets of the world, 
as against one-fifth of that value thirty years ago. There 
are also raised on this favored island large quantities of 
rice, sugar-cane, cotton, potatoes, tobacco, nutmegs, cloves, 
allspice, ginger, vanilla, cardamon, an abundant variety 
of all kinds of tropical fruits, croton and castor oil shrubs, 
and the various essential oils from citronelle, lemon, cin- 
namon-bark, etc. 

A visit one afternoon to the Buddhist College and mon- 
astery of Vidyodaya (Rice-wisdom) was full of interest. 
We found the old high-priest and president, Summangala, 
sitting in the wide sheltered balcony of his house, half naked, 
and chewing betel-nut. He received us very cordially, 
drew his yellow robe partly on, and seemed to take great 
pleasure in showing us over the college and in exhibiting 
14 



210 



The Islands of the Tropics. 



the many rare and valuable old Pali manuscripts which 
are to be found in the library. There were also a number 
of Sanskrit and English books, and, as we had found in the 
Buddhist College at Osaka, an English Bible. This insti- 
tution was established in 1873, and has ninety students and 
thirty priests. The buildings are modern and rather im- 
posing, but very far inferior to the Japanese institution. 

The same afternoon we called on Arabi Pasha, the exiled 
Egyptian Minister of War" He is a finely proportioned, 
dignified man of fifty, standing six feet two inches in his 
stockings, and weighing about two hundred pounds. He 
looks a good deal like my friend, Dr. Runcie, rector of the 
Episcopal Church of St. Joseph. He was out in his grounds 
when our cards were sent to him, and he scanned them long 
and carefully, but at last came and gave to us a courteous 
welcome. He has a sad, depressed look, and is doubtless 
greatly changed since his career of opposition and defiance 
to the European powers which ended so disastrously for him. 
He could speak but little English, but seemed interested 
in America, and thanked us for calling. 

Finding the weather quite warm at Colombo, after sev- 
eral days' stay, we went up among the mountains to the de- 
lightful little city of Kandy. From Colombo to Kandy 
your train first passes through endless groves of palms, be- 
tween which lie paddy fields and jungly swamps teeming 
with life, and luxuriant with tropical vegetation. Then the 
road begins to climb the mountains, and you are soon hang- 
ing over dizzy precipices, with the green valleys and ter- 
raced hill-sides far below you ; or going through narrow de- 
files with the beetling crags rising a thousand feet on either 
side ; or turning some sharp curve where the most magnifi- 
cent mountain scenery bursts upon you ; and all the while 
palms and ferns are beneath and overhead, and you look 
in wondering delight at nature's open-handed prodigality. 



Ceylon, the Land of Cinnamon and Spices. 



211 



Late in the evening you reach Kandy, a beautiful gem in 
a setting of hills which tower all around the little valley, 
and if you are not captivated with its lovely, artificial lakes, 
its broad esplanade, its romantic walks and drives, its beau- 
tiful gardens, its historic old temples and palaces, and its 
unsurpassed scenery, you have no poetry in your soul, and 
can neither appreciate the beauties of nature nor the good- 
ness of God. 

The Dalada Maligawa, or Temple of the Sacred Tooth of 
Buddha, at Kandy, is one of the Meccas of all good Bud- 
dhists. It is one of the wealthiest Buddhist temples in the 
East, and is the repository — so all good followers of Gautama 
believe — of one of Buddha's teeth. It is held so sacred that 
the kings and priests of Burmah and Siam still send valua- 
ble presents to it annually. Every afternoon at six o'clock 
the temple is opened for worship and for visitors, and while 
those who come for the first offer fragrant blossoms of the 
champak, frangipanni, and iron-wood, the latter are admit- 
ted through great brazen doors and behind heavy brocaded 
curtains into a small adytum, where they are permitted to see, 
not the tooth itself, but the daghobas of precious metal un- 
der seven of which, placed over each other like a nest of box- 
es, the sacred relic is said to rest. But I was more inter- 
ested in the library to which we were so fortunate as to gain 
access. Looking out over the esplanade and lake, at one 
corner of the group of rather massive-looking buildings con- 
stituting the temple, is an octagonal, tower-like structure, 
on the upper 'balcony of which the King of Kandy, in the 
olden days, used to sit and view the processions of his fol- 
lowers as they passed, riding on elephants and in all the 
barbaric pomp and splendor for which the kingdom was re- 
nowned ; or here he would stand and address the throng as 
they gathered below. This building is now used as an Ori- 
ental library, and contains a large number of valuable man- 



212 



The Islands of the Trojrics. 



uscripts and peculiar Pali sacred books, written on Talipot 
palm-leaves, the covers being ornamented with rubies, sap- 
johires, diamonds, opals, and other precious stones. In the 
dim light of the swinging lamps, these jewels shone like stars, 
and it was difficult to decide which was of most value — the 
manuscripts themselves or their sparkling covers. 

While at Kandy we had an opportunity of seeing some- 
thing of the fauna of Ceylon, and found it almost as diver- 
sified as the flora. Besides elephants, tigers, leopards, deer, 
and a vast tribe of smaller animals, these denizens of the 
forest and the jungle embrace the wild peacock, kite, vulture, 
owl, heron, snipe, kingfisher, crane, bird of paradise, water- 
hen, green parrot, teal, millions of crows, and myriads of 
sparrows. In the museum we saw several bronze images of 
the sacred goose, which was anciently worshiped by the Sin- 
ghalese. 

Southern Ceylon is classic ground. The fleets of Hiram, 
the ships of the wild Arabian rovers, and the ancient mar- 
iners of Portugal, successively watched and visited these 
Southern shores as they sailed to and from the Lands of 
the Orient in the past centuries. 

Ceylon is believed to be the Ophir of the Hebrews, abound- 
ing, as it does to this day, in precious stones, such as rubies, 
sapphires, pearls, amethysts, garnets, cat's-eyes, topazes, etc. 
A large proportion of the finest precious stones in the mar- 
kets of Paris, London, and New York come from this isl- 
and. This island is also the classic ground of Buddhism, 
and is rich in prehistoric monuments — ancient Hindoo and 
Buddhist temples, and ruins of lofty pagodas from three to 
four hundred feet in height. Some of these date as far back 
as three centuries before Christ, when Buddhism was first 
introduced into the island. The ruins of Anuradhapura, 
the ancient capital, are remarkably rich in sculptured stones, 
carved friezes, mural ornaments, and fragments of temples, 



Ceylon, the Land of Cinnamon and Spices. 213 

which attest the material greatness as well as the high civ- 
ilization of the prehistoric races of Lanka. There are also 
the remains of an elaborate system of irrigation which must 
have covered the country like a network, and which was 
marvelous in its completeness and extent. These are the 
mementos of a race who trod this beautiful island perhaps 
before the Pyramids or the Sphinx existed, and whose civ- 
ilization was older than that of Greece or Rome. 

But to Methodists and Wesleyans the world over, Ceylon 
is full of much more glorious associations and sacred mem- 
ories. In June, 1811, five Wesleyan missionaries brought 
to the waiting races of this island the first gospel message. 
But they came with hearts full of sadness, for only a few 
days before they had buried in the sea their venerated 
leader, Dr. Coke, whose name and memory are so dear to 
American Methodists. In the Wesleyan Mission church, 
at Colombo, there is a memorial tablet to Dr. Coke with 
the following inscription : 

" Sacred to the memory of the late Rev. Thomas Coke, 
LL.D., of the University of Oxford, General Superintend- 
ent of the Wesleyan Methodist Missions, who w r as an ar- 
dent lover of immortal souls, and a zealous and perse- 
vering advocate and friend of Christian missions among 
the heathen. By his instrumentality, liberality, and per- 
sonal exertions the Wesleyan Methodist Missions were in- 
troduced and established in all the four quarters of the 
globe. Their success in the conversion of sinners lay near- 
est his heart, and w T as one of the chief sources of his joy 
while on earth. Thousands of real converts will hail him 
blessed in the great day. His last principal undertaking 
w T as the introduction of this mission to Asia. For this pur- 
pose, like that primitive and eminent missionary, St. Paul, 
he withstood the earnest entreaties of his numerous friends, 
and at the advanced age of sixty-seven years he left his iia- 



214 



The Islands of the Tropics. 



tive and much-beloved country, under the express sanction of 
the British Government, and bearing letters testimonial from 
several of the principal characters in the State, being accom- 
panied by six other missionaries — the Rev. Messrs. Lynch, 
Ault,Erskine, Harvard, Squanee, and Clough— burning with 
fervent missionary zeal for the conversion of the inhabitants 
of India. He was followed by the tears and prayers of anx- 
ious multitudes. His constitution, however, sunk under the 
change of climate and from intense application to prepara- 
tory studies. He died on the voyage May 3, 1811, happy in 
the o&viou r whom he had so successfully preached to others, 
and his mortal remains were interred at sea in lat. 2° 29' 
south, and long. 59° 29' east. This tablet, inscribed by his 
surviving missionary friends and sons in the ministry, is 
designed as a public and constant memorial of their un- 
ceasing respect, affection, and reverence for his person and 
character. August, 1816." 

The martyrdom of Dr. Coke and the devotion and conse- 
cration of those early missionaries has borne abundant fruit, 
and the Wesleyan Mission in Ceylon has now three dis- 
tricts, 42 missionaries, 87 churches, 2,417 members, 595 pro- 
bationers, 5,857 Sunday-school scholars, and 7,561 children 
in day-schools. We met a number of these missionaries 
and laymen, and found them earnest, consecrated Christian 
people, We looked in on a district meeting of the Colom- 
bo District, but had only time for a word of greeting. It 
was a privilege to preach on Sunday evening in the Col- 
petty (Colombo) church ; and I have never had a more attent- 
ive audience. The Eev. John Scott, the Chairman of the 
Colombo District, has been in Ceylon thirty-one years, and 
his wife, the daughter of a missionary, was born here in the 
house where they are now living. It is not often that an 
itinerant Methodist preacher's daughter and wife spends 
her whole life in the house in which she was born. At din- 



Ceylon, the Land of Cinnamon and Spices. 215 



ner one evening in this hospitable Christian home we had 
rather a remarkable company. Although there were only 
nine persons present, every continent was represented. Two 
were English, representing Europe ; two were born in Asia, 
one in Africa, one in Australia, while there were three 
Americans, The lady from Africa was a granddaughter 
of Rev. Robert Moffat and a niece of David Livingston. One 
of the Americans was the evangelist, Miss Leonard, who 
conducted a successful revival-meeting several years ago in 
St. Joseph, Mo., and who is making an evangelistic tour of 
the world. 

The visit of Bishops Marvin and Hendrix is still remem- 
bered with pleasure by these good people, and the Rev. Mr, 
Eaton told us that the people at Kandy still speak of a 
sermon which Bishop Marvin preached there, 



IV. 



INDIA, THE LAND OF THE VEDAS. 

utside of Indus, inside Ganges, lies 
A wide-spread country famed enough of yore; 
Northward the peaks of caved Emodus rise, 

And southward ocean doth confine the shore ; 
She hears the yoke of various sovereignties 

And various are her creeds. While these adore 
Vicious Mafoma, those to stock and stone 

Bow down, and eke to brutes among them grown. 

— Camoens. 
(217) 




I. 

The great Temple tts of Mhem India, 

1 FOUND it difficult to realize that I was at last in India, 
| the land of palms and pearls, of the Vedas and the sacred 
rivers, of philosophies that were old when Greece was young, 
and of religions that were cradled with the race. I cannot 
remember when I did not dream of this wonderful land ; of 
its matchless Taj and gorgeous Peacock throne ; of its mag- 
nificent temples and terrible Juggernaut; of its marble 
palaces and pearl mosques ; of its great Moguls and price- 
less gems. From my boyhood I have heard in imagination 
the rustle of its palms and bamboos, the flow of its sacred 
rivers, the murmur of its winds as they have swept down 
the sides of the Himalayas, and the mysterious voices of its 
past. The whole land is electric with mighty associations 
and full of thrilling historic memories. But more interesting 
even than the marvelous wealth of " Ormus and of Ind," and 
the checkered history of the dead Empires of India, are the 
people w T ho made that history and who established a civil- 
ization which has challenged the admiration of the world 
for nearly four thousand years. When the great Aryan 
migration took place thousands of years ago, from the foot 
of the Hindoo Kosh Mountains into Western Asia and 
thence into Europe, dividing into the Indo-European na- 
tions, a branch of the immigrants left the main body and, 
crossing the Himalayas, went south into the great penin- 
sula which we call India. This was about fourteen hundred 
years Before Christ, and near the same time the children of 

(219) 



220 



India, the Land of the Vedas, 



Israel were becoming established in the Land of Promise. 
The great mountains, standing like giant sentinels along 
the northern borders of the Punjab, divided them from the 
rest of the world and made their isolation complete, and 
for a thousand years they wrote poems, sang their Vedas, 
founded Empires, established splendid dynasties, and con- 
structed grand systems of philosophy and religion, without 
any interference from other nations; so that what we can 
learn of them during that period through their traditions 
and the Vedas — the oldest books in the world except the 
Pentateuch and possibly the Book of Job — teaches us more 
of our great Aryan ancestors than we can discover through 
any other source. They are our nearest of kin, and possi- 
bly sing the same hymns and offer the same prayers that 
our old fathers did four thousand years ago. 

The only historical records of that early period that 
have come down to us are contained in two epic poems, 
the Maha Bharata and the Ramayana. There is a tradi- 
tion that King Darius, the Persian monarch, invaded 
India about 518 B.C., and that the provinces which he 
conquered and annexed to his kingdom were so rich and 
extensive that their tribute furnished one-third of the 
revenues of the Persian Crown; but many historians deem 
this story apocryphal. The first authentic records are with 
regard to the invasion of Alexander in 327 B.C. He made 
himself master of the Punjab and went as far south as the 
Ravi, the most southern of the five rivers from which this 
section of India gets its name. 

On the death of Alexander, in the division of the Mace- 
donian Empire, this passed to Seleucus and afterward be- 
came part of the Kingdom of Maghada, which lasted un- 
til 195 B.C. 

Here there is an hiatus of nearly a thousand years in 
the history of India — a distracted period during which the 



The Great Temple Cities of Southern India. 221 



whole of Hindostan was divided into a great number of 
little kingdoms, each contending for the mastery. But the 
wealth of India had been discovered, and marvelous stories 
were told of where 

The gorgeous East, with richest hand, 
Pours on her kings barbaric wealth and gold. 
Eoman merchant fleets sailed from Egypt to Malabar, and 
Portuguese armadas darkened the Indian seas. Adventurers 
from all lands began to flock to this new Eldorado, and in 
all the centuries since this wonderful country has been the 
mine and the battle-field of the world. Greeks, Persians, 
Arabians, Afghans, Tartars, Portuguese, French, and En- 
glish have in turn invaded, conquered, and robbed it. 
When Marco Polo started out to see new and strange 
countries, he first turned his steps to this land of rare and 
precious stones, of temples, idols, priests, and dancing girls. 
When Columbus set sail from Spain, the object of his ex- 
pedition was to find a new and shorter route to India. 

The Mussulman first came to India in the year 1001 
A.D., and he came to stay. This first Mohammedan con- 
queror was a Turk named Mahmud; after that, first the 
Mohammedans and then the Afghans held India until 1398, 
when Tamerlane descended the passes of the Himalayas 
with the sword in one hand and the Koran in the other. 
But he was only an invader. One hundred and twenty- 
five years later, his descendant, Baber, completed the con- 
quest of Hindostan and established the Mogul empire, 
founding the most splendid dynasty the world has ever 
seen. The character of these rulers, the terror of whose 
name has filled the whole earth, is well described by Moore 
where he speaks of them as 

That saintly, murderous brood, 

To carnage and the Koran given, 
Who think through unbelievers' blood 
Lies their directest path to heaven. 



222 



India, the Land of the Vedas. 



Near the close of the last century, the power of the 
Moguls began to wane, and in 1785 the Mahrattas of the 
South obtained possession of Delhi and usurped the su- 
preme authority. But in 1803, Shah Alum, the last actual 
possessor of the once mighty throne of the Moguls, gladly 
j^laced himself and his Empire under the protection of Great 
Britain, that power having already established important 
commercial interests in India through the great East India 
Company, which was chartered by Queen Elizabeth in 
1600. This protectorate continued for more than fifty 
years, but in 1856 Shah Alum's grandson, Mohammed 
Suraj-oo-deen, instigated by his young wife, Zeenat Mahal, 
violated his treaty engagements and brought about the 
great Sepoy rebellion, which resulted in India becoming 
in name what it already was in fact, a part of the British 
Empire. 

We wished to see India thoroughly, and especially de- 
sired to see the great temples in the South not often visited 
by travelers, and hence we crossed over from Ceylon to 
Tuticorin, which is only a short distance north of Cape 
Comorin, the southern point of the great peninsula. We 
took passage in a steamer of the British India Company, 
and although we thought that our 10,000 miles of ocean 
voyaging had by this time made us pretty good sailors, we 
found the same old nausea returning as our little vessel 
plunged and tossed in the strait between the island and 
the main-land, down which the wind sweeps at all times, 
making it a veritable English Channel. We longed for 

© © © 

that bridge by which Rama recovered his wife, and per- 
fectly sympathized with one of the Catos of ancient Rome, 
who, as he was drawing near his end, said there were three 
regrets still lying on his mind. The first was, that he had 
spent a day without bringing any thing good to pass; the 
second, that he had once intrusted a secret to a woman (in 



The Great Temple Cities of Southern India. 223 



which I wholly differ from him) ; but the third regret was 
one in which I have deeply sympathized with the old Ro- 
man several times since I started on this trip — that once in 
his life-time he had made a journey by sea when he could 
have gone by land. 

One fortunate thing about this trip, however, was that it 
was not long. We crossed in about fifteen hours, though 
they anchored six miles out, and we had to pay two rupees 
to get ashore in the steam launch, notwithstanding our 
tickets read to Tuticorin. 

Our first view of India was disappointing. It was not 
the land of our dreams. Tuticorin is a dry, sandy, hot 
Indian village with long, sunny streets, shapeless mud huts, 
flat-topped and irregularly thrown together, and a narrow, 
crowded bazaar, where the natives squat in the sun all day. 
Like all the villages in Southern India, it looks like an ag- 
gregation of dog-kennels, baked in the sun and cracked. 
Several groves of palm-trees, a number of large tanks in 
various parts of the town, in all of which there were na- 
tives bathing; one or two small temples, and crowds of 
natives, nine-tenths naked, basking in the sun, complete the 
picture. We did not tarry long, but left by the noon train for 
Madura. Although this latter is a city of 52,000 inhab- 
itants, there is no hotel — only a small " Dak Bungalow " 
— a rest-house for travelers provided by the Government — 
and two rooms over the railroad station, with a refreshment 
room. The bungalow was full, and one room at the sta- 
tion was occupied. The rules of the railroad company 
only allowed two to stay in a room, and there were four in 
our party. The old lady who had charge of the rooms 
was inexorable, and all that we could do was to send a note 
to the residence of the superintendent, a mile off. The 
coveted order came at last, and about midnight we began 
our first night's sleep in India. 



224 



India, the Land of the Vedas. 



The next morning we were off early to see the great 
Hindoo temple of Madura, one of the largest and most 
celebrated in India. It is a parallelogram seven hundred 
and forty-four feet long from east to west, and eight hun- 
dred and forty-seven feet from north to south. At three 
of the corners are immense towers or " Gopuras," the tallest 
being one hundred and fifty feet high, with ten stories. 
Each of these is covered from base to summit with tawdry- 
colored, grotesque figures, in bass-relief and stucco, of men, 
horses, dragons, lions, tigers, snakes, and mythological 
figures in every variety of posture. I counted fifty of 
these figures on one panel, and there are probably one 
thousand on the largest tower, most of them life size. The 
temple proper is divided into two parts, one being to Min- 
akshi, " the fish-eyed goddess," the consort of Siva, on the 
east side, and the other to Siva on the west side. We en- 
tered the eastern division of the temple through a corridor 
thirty feet long. This ended in a large quadrangle where 
there is a stone tank two hundred feet square, with steps 
leading down into it, and an open balcony, twenty feet 
wide, all around it. The water of this j)ool is supposed to 
possess very great sanctity, and throngs of men and women 
were bathing in it. Everywhere walls and pillars are 
covered with grotesque and often indecent figures. On the 
north there was a long, dark corridor, ending, we were 
told, in the adytum, where there was a golden shrine, and 
into which no profane feet could go. X\e could see lights 
gleaming and flashing away down the passage, and could 
hear drums, fifes, and tom-toms. While we were watching, 
a procession of priests and Brahman women, with music, 
came out, bearing a kind of stretcher on which was a small 
image. We then turned to the right and passed through 
another long, dark corridor into an open temple, lighted 
from the roof, in which there were numerous shrines. All 



The Great Temple Cities of Southern India, 225 

around us were vast apartments, with throngs of worship- 
ers, attendant priests, incense burning, and strange-looking 
shrines, while from a distant chapel came the sound of 
chanting. A crowd of beggars, Brahmans, and naked ur- 
chins followed us, and we realized more fully than w T e ever 
had before that we were in a heathen land. This is the 
livest paganism we have yet seen, and is very different 
from the dead, formal Buddhism which we saw in Japan 
and China. There were half a dozen sacred elephants in 
this temple, and altogether it is the most impressive and 
striking heathen worship which we have encountered. 
These Brahmans all have their foreheads striped with red 
or yellow pigment, to denote the caste. The trident was 
the most common emblem which I saw. Some of them 
had simply a round, red mark on their forehead, while 
others had two parallel marks. It is a hideous custom, 
nevertheless it seems to be universal among them. Even 
some of the women bear these marks, and many of the 
men have them on their naked breasts as well as on their 
foreheads. 

Madura w T as the capital of the ancient Pandyan King- 
dom, of which little is known save that one of its kings sent 
an embassy to Augustus Csesar. Another king has left a 
palace, which we visited and found to be a splendid speci- 
men of Saracenic architecture. It is very remarkable to 
see this palace, built by a Hindoo, who hated the Moham- 
medans with a deadly hatred, surrounded by houses built 
in the peculiar style of Hindoo architecture, and yet itself 
like a part of the Alhambra. It was built by Tirumel, the 
greatest of all the rulers of Madura, in 1623. He reigned 
gloriously over Pandya for thirty-six years. The palace is 
all marble and granite, and is being restored for the use of 
the Government. When fully repaired it will be one of 
the finest Government buildings in India. 
15 



226 



India, the Land of the Vedas. 



The entrance is a square court on three sides of which is 
a magnificent colonnade two hundred and fifty-two feet long 
from east to west and one hundred and fifty feet broad. 
The roof is supported by massive arches resting on granite 
pillars twenty feet in circumference. The throne-room un- 
der the grand dome is sixty-one feet in diameter and sev- 
enty-three feet high to the internal apex of the dome. One 
room which we entered, and which is now used as a court- 
room, is said to have been Tirumel's bedroom. It is a 
magnificent apartment, seventy feet broad and one hundred 
and twenty-six feet long, the ceiling being over fifty feet 
high. At the south-east corner of this room is a small hall 
in which there is a massive, self-supporting square stone 
stair-way leading to a wide, airy colonnade, one side of which 
looks out upon the town and the other through openings in 
the wall into the king's bed-chamber below. 

The oldest mission of the American Board in India is 
at Madura, it having been established there for over fifty 
vears. It has been for the last seven years in charge of 
Rev. John P. Jones. The zenana and hospital work is in 
charge of Dr. M. P. Eoot and Miss H. A. Houston. We 
had several hours of delightful interview with these earnest 
missionaries, and obtained some interesting facts regarding 
their work. The ladies have eleven Bible-women working 
under them, and six hundred houses in Madura are open to 
them. Last year over twenty thousand inmates of zenanas 
heard the gospel through these women, and nine hundred 
are now reading the Bible with them. There are four con- 
gregations in Madura, two of which are self-supporting, and 
each of these latter also supports an evangelist. There is a 
Christian population in the district of eleven thousand, with 
twenty-nine hundred and eight communicants and forty- 
seven hundred and nine pupils in schools. There are about 
four hundred villages in the district, which embraces a ter- 



The Great Temple Cities of Southern India. 227 



ritory of seven thousand square miles, in which there are 
two hundred and forty congregations. 

Another very remarkable mission is a Church of England 
station at Meygnanapuram, in Tinneyville District, in the ex- 
treme southern portion of India. We were not far from it, 
but could not conveniently go there. The church has a 
membership of one thousand. You travel for seven miles, 
after leaving the railroad, through sand so deep that you 
cannot go in a bullock cart, but must travel on horseback. 
Soon you see a tall spire lifting itself above the palm-groves, 
and at last you come to a little native village of mud huts, 
in the center of which stands this magnificent church which 
will seat thirteen hundred people. Southern India is said 
to be much the best field for missions, although there are 
some very successful missions in the North. 

From Madura we went to Trichinopoli, a city of sixty 
thousand inhabitants, where, like the Master, w T e literally 
"had not where to lay our heads." It is so seldom that 
travelers visit this portion of India that there are very mea- 
ger accommodations for them, and as it happened that sev- 
eral others had taken the same notion that we had, and had 
taken the precaution to send telegrams ahead, every place 
was full. Think of a half-dozen travelers overflowing a 
city of sixty thousand people! We finally persuaded the 
station-master to let us spread our rugs in the hall between 
the only two rooms in the place provided for travelers, and 
there we spent the latter portion of the night. In the 
morning, w T e rode in the early twilight toward the island 
of Seringam, some two miles from Trichinopoli, where the 
great temple is situated. It is the largest temple in India, 
and perhaps the largest in the world. As we rode in the 
fresh morning air through the streets of the old city, it was 
the India of my dreams. We passed picturesque groups of 
dark natives walking along the streets or riding in bullock 



228 



India, the Land, of the Vedas. 



carts; great square tanks with steps on all sides oiled with 
the Brahmans performing their morning ablutions, which is 
as much a part of their worship as prayer; massive ruined 
towers vrhich looked as if they had stood for centuries ; the 
domes and minarets of numerous mosques rising above the 
palm-trees and bamboo-groves; water-carriers with cloths 
about their loins, staggering under full goat-skins; and sad- 
faced women with graceful draperies of red, white, yellow, 
or blue over their heads. It was the colored, pictured, 
lounging Orient of which I had thought so much. We 
soon reached the Kaveri River, and as we crossed the long 
bridge over to the island of Seringam, where the great tem- 
ple stands, and looked up and down the stream, the banks 
on either side were lined with men and women washing in 
the sacred waters. 

The temple is really an immense in closure like a walled 
city. First comes the outer wall, which is twenty-four hun- 
dred and seventy-five feet wide, and twenty-eight hundred 
and eighty feet long. Outside of this the profane city lives ; 
inside all who are in any way connected with the temple or 
temple service. There are regular streets with houses, ba- 
zaars, markets, etc. There is a second and third wall, but 
within the third inciosure only Brahmans are allowed to 
live. Then comes the fourth wall, which incloses the ady- 
tum or holy place — the temple proper. Our guide told us 
that eleven thousand people lived within the outer temple 
wall, and we could well believe it, as the whole place was 
like a crowded city. Each square is entered by four lofty 
gate-ways with immense gopuras, rising to a great height 
and visible long before you reach the city. These gopuras 
look like mountains of bright and shining hues, and rise in 
range after range of gods and goddesses, demons, horses, 
dragons, elephants, and other animals in vivid tints and 
grotesque shapes. There are twenty-one of them in all, and 



The Great Temple Cities of Southern India. 229 



they face the four cardinal points of the compass. We as- 
cended the tallest one, clambering up steep and narrow 
steps, through dark and dirty windows, and over broken 
stones and debris, a high caste Brahman guiding us with a 
dingy lantern which only made the darkness visible. But 
the view at the top amply repaid us as we looked from the 
great temple at our feet, with its shrines, towers, minarets 
and worshipers, past the historic and ancient city of Trich- 
inopoli, across the rivers and jungles into the vast plain of 
Southern India, which stretched for miles in every direc- 
tion. 

When we descended and started to leave the temple, we 
had a unique scene. As we had gone through the various 
quadrangles of the immense structure, in the procession 
that followed us were two of the sacred elephants of the 
temple — great, sleek fellows that would have rivaled Jum- 
bo, with a mahout astride each mighty neck. These ele- 
phants now proceeded to " take up a collection " — these Hin- 
doos are great on collections; they rival St. Paul and Meth- 
odist preachers along this line. Our guide told us what 
was wanted, and when we laid down a two-anna piece upon 
the pavement, one of them took it up as deftly with his 
trunk as a steward takes the silver from the contribution- 
basket. I should like to have one of these elephants at 
home to assist me in taking up the missionary collection. 
Would he not create a sensation as he walked down the 
aisle poking his trunk at the people? And their pertinac- 
ity is as amusing as it is effective. The guide told us that 
they never failed to "raise the collection.'*' 

This great temple is one of the most celebrated in India, 
and has grown to its present size by additions from time 
to time. The rupees and annas of the poor, the gold of 
princes, the crowns of kings, and the precious stones of the 
grandees have been here laid upon the altar of Vishnu. 



230 



India, the Land of the Vedas. 



Queens and fair ladies, in the old barbaric days, took off 
their brightest diamonds and most dazzling rubies, and pre- 
sented them on bended knees to the God of Preservation, 
and so a richly endowed monastery has grown up here with 
sculptured halls, magnificent monoliths that cost the ran- 
som of a king, splendid carvings in wood and stone, and 
golden images covered with jewels; and foot-sore pilgrims 
come from far and near to worship at great Vishnu's shrine, 
to wash away their sins in the great tank of Seringam, and 
to look through the portals into Heaven's Gate, which is 
opened once a year, and behind which lies the colossal re- 
cumbent figure of the idol. 

From the temple we went to the great Bock of Trichin- 
opoli, a frowning Acropolis over three hundred feet high, 
on which there was a great fort in the olden days, and 
which is associated with the English and French struggle 
for the possession of Southern India, and with memories of 
Clive, Major Lawrence, Duplex, and others who took a 
leading part in that contest. 

But there was another spot at Trichinopoli which pos- 
sessed for us a far greater interest than either the temple 
or the great rock. It was the English Cemetery, in 
which rises the beautiful memorial church where lie the 
remains of Bishop Heber. It was " high noon " when we 
reached the cemetery, and, walking over the graveled path- 
way of the well-kept grounds, we were glad to escape 
from the glaring heat into the cool and quiet church, which 
seemed pervaded with the very atmosphere of devotion. On 
the pulpit floor, over the vault, is a composite stone, three 
by five feet, bearing this inscription on an illuminated scroll : 

Here rest the remains 
of 

REGINALD HEBER, D.D., 
Third Bishop of 
Calcutta. 



The Great Temple Cities of Southern India. 231 



In the wall, on the north side of the pulpit, is this inscrip- 
tion: 

Sacred 
To the memory of 
BEGIKALD HEBER, D.D., 
Lord Bishop of Calcutta, 
Who was here suddenly called to his eternal rest during his visita- 
tion of the southern provinces of his extended 
Diocese, on the 
3d Day of April, A.D. MDCCCXXVI, 
And in the third year of his Episcopate. 
Be ye also ready. 

We stood for some minutes reverent and thoughtful' beside 
the dust of the great missionary bishop who wrote the 
grandest missionary hymn ever penned, and felt that we 
would rather be the author of such a hymn than "wear a 
royal diadem or sit upon a throne." He lies buried be- 
neath "India's coral strand/' but his words are sung 
around the world, and will be wafted by the wind to earth's 
remotest bounds until all the races of men are delivered 
from " error's chains." 

Tanjore was our next objective point, and we found it to 
be a place full of interest. The only conveyances were lit- 
tle covered carts drawn by diminutive ponies, and, charter- 
ing two of these for our party, we were soon on our w r ay to 
the temple and palace. Tanjore was the capital of one of 
the greatest of the ancient Hindoo dynasties of Southern 
India. Its monuments of Hindoo and early civilization are 
of the first importance, and its great temple is an historic 
one, known throughout the world. It is an immense quad- 
rangle, entered through a massive gate-way, and surrounded 
on three sides by shrines, cloisters, and long colonnades, hav- 
ing on the fourth side a long garden. Just opposite the en- 
trance, under a pavilion one hundred and two feet from 
east to west, forty-eight feet from north to south, and thir- 



232 



India, the Land of the Vedas. 



ty-five feet high, is a nanda, or sacred bull— a monolith of 
black granite twelve feet ten inches high and sixteen feet 
long. The most striking feature of this temple, however, 
is the immense pyramidal gopura, which rises in the cen- 
ter of the great court to a height of two hundred feet and 
has sixteen stories, each side of the base being one hundred 
and fifty feet. From the base to the summit this is covered 
with gaudy figures similar to those upon the Madura and 
Trichinopoli pagodas. But about half-way up on the left- 
hand side is an unmistakable Englishman with a wide- 
awake hat. At its base there is said to be a prophecy in 
Sanskrit to the effect that men dressed in that costume 
would one day conquer and rule India. This latter is a 
very pretty story, and I am sorry to spoil it; but while I 
saw the undoubted features of John Bull I could see no in- 
scription, and I am very much inclined to believe that some 
modern artist has stuck the figure among the old Indian 
carvings. 

The missionary, Swartz, died here at Tanjore February 
13, 1798, and we visited the memorial church in the little 
fort close to Shivanga Tank, the water of which is much 
used for drinking purposes. When we were there late in 
the evening the steps of the tank and the road leading to it 
were full of women with their water-jars upon their heads. 
It was a truly Oriental scene, and might have been the sub- 
ject of hundreds of pictures of Eastern life that we have 
seen. 

In the church there is a very fine group of figures in 
white marble, by Flaxman, representing the death of 
Swartz. The aged missionary is extended on his bed, and 
on his left stands the Eajah Sirfoji, his pupil, with two at- 
tendants, while on his right is the missionary Kohlner, and 
near the foot of the bed are four boys. It is a very strik- 
ing group, and underneath it is an inscription commemo- 



The Great Temple Cities of Southern India. 233 



rating" his virtues and stating- that the memorial was raised 
to his memory by the Rajah of Tanjore, Maharajah Sirfo- 
ji. Sirfoji was a pupil of Swartz, and was singularly at- 
tached to him. At the funeral he bedewed the corpse with 
tears, and, in spite of the defilement according to Hindoo 
belief, accompanied it to the grave. He was brought up 
among Christians, but always remained a Hindoo in relig- 
ion and a munificent patron of Brahmans. He was a 
very accomplished and highly educated man, and was the 
last Rajah of Tanjore who exercised any authority. He 
surrendered his power to the English Government Octo- 
ber 25, 1798, and died in 1832. He was succeeded in the 
pageant government by his son Sivaji, who died in 1853 
without issue. 

Sivaji had sixteen wives, eleven of whom still survive 
and live in the old palace. The senior Raness has an an- 
nuity of one thousand rupees per month, and the others an- 
nuities of eight hundred rupees each per month. There are 
about seven hundred attendants, policemen, guards, etc., in 
this palace. We visited it and found it a vast structure, 
though neither so massive nor of such splendid architecture 
as the Madura palace. It was built about 1550 A.D., and 
is as strongly Hindoo in architecture as the Madura struct- 
ure is Saracenic. The royal reception-room is a splendid 
apartment, having at one end a raised platform of black 
granite — a single slab twenty feet square. On this plat- 
form, in a case which the attendant opened for us, is a 
white marble statue of Sirfoji. 

The library in the palace contains a remarkable collec- 
tion of eighteen thousand Sanskrit manuscripts, of which 
eight thousand are w T ritten on palm-leaves. This library is 
unique, and, in India at least, nothing at all equal to it is 
to be found as regards Sanskrit. 



II. 



Taujore to Calcutta. 



AILBOADS in India seem almost a profanation. The 



X?\ shriek of the iron horse rudely awakened these sleepy 
Orientals from their dreams, and disturbed the conservatism 
which had for unnumbered centuries controlled them. At 
first they highly resented so startling an innovation, but when 
they found that it saved them miles of weary walking when 
they went on their long pilgrimages, and that they could 
ride nearly as cheaply as they could walk, they began to 
travel by steam, and now every locomotive that goes flying 
through the country draws long trains of carriages filled 
with these chattering, noisy people. The system of caste 
was at first an objection, and prevented many of them from 
riding, as a high caste man would consider himself polluted 
if there even fell upon him the shadow of one below him in 
caste, much less being touched by him. But railroads are 
great levelers, and caste soon gave way ; and now Moham- 
medans and Hindoos, Brahmans and Pariahs sit side by side 
in the same car, and forget their differences in taking ad- 
vantage of English blessings. 

Few peoj^le who have never been to India have any idea 
of the extent of the railroad system of the country. A net- 
work of railroads now extends in every direction, and other 
roads are being rapidly built. The first road was put in 
operation in 1852, and there are now ten thousand miles of 
railway, and twelve thousand miles of telegraph. The coun- 
try being generally level, the roads are easily built, and be- 




(234) 



Tanjore to Calcutta. 



235 



ing well ballasted they are much smoother than many of 
our roads. They do not have wooden sleepers, but the rails 
are laid on iron saucers with connecting bands, and the 
tracks are firm and sufficiently elastic. The coaches — car- 
riages they are called here — are after the English style, and 
are divided into compartments, with a long seat on either 
side. At night these seats serve for couches — there are no 
sleeping-cars in India — and two other bunks let down like 
shelves over them, giving sleeping accommodation for four 
persons in each compartment, and only four are allowed to 
occupy it at night. Every passenger is expected to provide 
his own blanket and pillow, and as the seats are well uphol- 
stered you can sleep very comfortably on them. 

Railroad traveling is not expensive in India, and if you 
choose to travel second or third class, it is very cheap. Sec- 
ond class is about half the price of first class, and third class 
half that of second. All the natives, with very few excep- 
tions, travel third class, and they are often packed into the 
cars like sardines. 

From Tanjore to Madras the road runs through one vast 
plain, and perhaps one accustomed to India w r ould call the 
country flat and uninteresting; but to our Occidental eyes 
it w#s like an ever-changing kaleidoscope. The strange 
vegetation; the great tanks of water by the w T ay-side; the 
thatched roofs and plastered walls of the native huts in the 
villages we passed ; the domes and minarets of mosques and 
temples gleaming in the groves and towering above the cit- 
ies; the great banyan-trees, with their circles of growing 
limbs all taking fresh root in the ground and surrounding 
the parent tree like a young forest ; the groves of bamboos 
and tamarind, acacias and mangoes, palms and sacred pe- 
puls; and, above all, the crowds of picturesque natives in 
every field, along the roads, and at all the stations, with 
their black and brown faces, the gaudy streaks of sect, the 



236 



India, the Land of the Vedas. 



many-colored turbans and flowing robes — all these made a 
continued picture of which we did not tire during our long 
ride of a day and a half. In many fields were goat-herds 
with their large droves of goats, these animals supplying the 
natives of this part of India largely with food, milk, and 
clothing. Hedges of cactus, and wild aloes — the largest and 
most luxuriant I have ever seen — bordered the railroad for 
miles, while everywhere appeared the pretty little striped 
palm squirrel. Splendid iron bridges crossed great dry beds 
of rivers, half a mile of sand being on either side of a lit- 
tle stream which ran through the center like a silver thread ; 
and on either bank of these rivers were men and women 
beating their wet clothes on the flat rocks. This is the uni- 
versal method of washing clothes in this country, and woe 
be to the garments that are of frail texture, and to the but- 
tons that are not securely sewed on! In the wet seasons 
these dry beds are full of a roaring flood from bank to bank, 
and frequently serious overflows occur, to guard against 
which there were embankments in many places, reminding 
me of the levees of the lower Mississippi. 

Our curiosity was greatly excited by many sacred groves 
with sculptured horses, grotesquely carved and painted, 
which we saw by the road-side as we sped along, but I have 
not been able to find any satisfactory explanation of these 
idol horses, for they are evidently objects of worship. We 
passed fields of millet, tobacco, castor-oil bean, rice, poppy, 
and cotton, there being very many fields of the last, but the 
plants were small and stunted. India is the oldest cotton- 
growing and cotton-manufacturing country in the world. 
Thousands of years ago it grew this great staple, and while 
it has never beena ble to produce any thing in quality equal 
to our Southern States, it still continues to raise large quan- 
tities. We also saw a great deal of wheat, and India is rap- 
idly becoming one of the great wheat-producing countries 



Tan j ore to Calcutta. 237 

of the world. Some Englishmen with whom I was talking 
the other day boasted exultingly that Indian wheat would 
ere many years drive American wheat from the markets of 
England ; but that will never happen so long as the qual- 
ity of the wheat grown in this country is so far inferior to 
our product. 

In almost every field were raised platforms covered with 
branches to protect from the sun, on which a boy sat to 
scare away the flocks of plundering birds ; for crows are sa- 
cred, and great numbers are to be seen everywhere in this 
land. Irrigation wells were to be seen in every direction, 
from which the w T ater was raised by old-fashioned "sweeps," 
which, instead of being managed by hand, were operated by 
two men walking up and down on them. I have been in- 
terested in noticing how the different methods of irrigating 
a country are indicative of the different civilizations. In 
California the forces of nature were utilized, and windmills 
everywhere sent the water where it was needed. In China 
we saw in some places great water-wheels which were turned 
by men treading them, and in other sections wheels work- 
ing in cogs and connecting with an outer wheel turned by 
horses; while here in India, where human labor is so cheap, 
they cling to the primitive method of their forefathers of 
thousands of years ago, and two men do the work for w r hich 
our Anglo-Saxon civilization utilizes the wind. 

It was a rich, fertile country through which w r e sped; 
poorly cultivated, and yet yielding from two to three crops 
per annum. And the astonishing part of it is that it has 
been doing the same thing for four thousand years, and that 
without any fertilizing, for every portion of vegetable growth 
is utilized, and even the manure is used for fuel here, as 
everywhere else in India. 

Madras was the first possession of the English in India, the 
strip of sandy and surf-bound coast of Coromandel, where 



238 



India, the Land of the Vedas. 



it is situated, having been purchased in 1639 from one of 
the Hindoo Rajahs of the Peninsula. The piece was six miles 
long and one mile wide, and the English built a factory on 
it and raised a wall around the factory mounted with can- 
non, and gave it the name of Fort St. George. In a few 
years two towns had grown up, the one inside the fort, oc- 
cupied by Europeans, being called White Town, and the one 
outside, settled by the natives, being called Black Town, a 
name which it retains to this clay. We found Madras a 
dusty, straggling, overgrown city of four hundred thousand 
inhabitants — about as uninteresting a place as can well be 
imagined for its size. It is a city of magnificent distances, 
and I have never seen such immense stretches of unoccupied 
ground between the different portions of a city. It is said 
to be scattered over a territory twenty miles in extent, and 
I am disposed to credit it from what I saw of it. I am 
sure that we drove five miles from the railroad station to a 
hotel, and then, not liking the looks of that house, another five 
miles before we found the next hotel, at which we stopped. 

We tried to visit the museum, which is said to be one of 
the best in India, but found it closed on account of the 
races. So we lost the sight of about the only thing in 
Madras that is said to be worth seeing. This Oriental cus- 
tom of closing up banks, museums, stores, offices, and every 
other place, on the slightest provocation, is intensely annoy- 
ing to a Western man. Xothing opens until 10 a.m. ; 
every thing closes at 3 p.m. ; and it seems to me that they 
have two or three holidays a week. When I first arrived 
at Yokohama, I was a week trying to get into the bank. 
Every time I went I was either too late or too early, or it 
was a holiday and the bank was closed, until I began to 
think there was a plot to keep me out of my money. 

And now because the Madras races were going on, the 
museum was closed, and neither love nor money would open 



Tanjore to Calcutta. 



239 



the doors for us! I was particularly anxious to verify a 
statement made by Edward Arnold concerning a coin which 
is in this museum. Mr. Arnold says that it is a gold coin 
which the Emperor Claudius struck to commemorate the 
conquest of Britain, and that it was found in an excavation 
near Madras. There is a tradition that St. Thomas, one of 
the apostles, came on a missionary tour to India and died 
here, and Mr. Arnold supposes that he must have brought 
it in his scrip. It is a striking coincidence that this coin, 
which so strangely links the past and present of England's 
history, should be found here in the country which she 
conquered. This coincidence is only matched by a recently 
discovered fact regarding the famous old ship " Mayflower," 
which on the 25th of December, 1620, landed the Pilgrim 
Fathers on Plymouth Eock. It has been discovered, 
through the first volume of the Court Minutes of the East 
India Company, that this vessel was chartered by this com- 
pany in 1659, and went to Masulipatam from Goombroon for 
a cargo of rice and general produce. She was lost upon the 
voyage home — " one of the ships whose history is linked with 
that of the birth and uprise of great nations." 

One evening, while at Madras, we met a fantastic-look- 
ing procession, with a band of native musicians in front, 
followed by a kind of palanquin, surmounted by the figure 
of a small elephant, covered with flowers, and ornamented 
with red and yellow cloths, Within lay the dead body of 
an old man. There were six bearers dressed in white with 
wreaths of yellow flowers around their necks, and after 
them followed a motley crowd of men and boys. Inquiry 
from a rather intelligent-looking man who brought up the 
rear revealed the fact that the body was to be cremated, 
and we were told that if we desired we could witness the cere- 
mony. Deeming ourselves fortunate, we ordered our car- 
riage to follow the procession, and in about an hour we ar- 



240 



India, the Land of the Vedas. 



rived at a desolate spot in the secluded outskirts of the city. 
It was as weird a spot and as uncanny a scene as I have 
ever come upon. The sun was just setting ; an old ruiued 
temple stood a little distance off; the cawing crows screamed 
overhead; the thick Indian jungle was not more than a 
hundred yards from us, and in the center of a crowd of 
picturesque-looking natives was the funeral pile upon which 
they laid the old man. They first opened a package of rice, 
and each relative dropped a few grains upon him. Then 
his grandson, who was his nearest relative present — no 
women ever attend Hindoo funerals — threw some water on 
his face and filled his mouth with betel-nut. They then 
scattered flowers over him, and his grandson bent down and 
kissed the soles of his feet. After covering him with a thin 
cloth, a priest stood at his head and chanted a kind of fu- 
neral service in a loud voice, while the musicians played a 
low refrain, at the conclusion of which all the company 
joined in the refrain. The fuel was next piled all over him 
so as to completely cover him, and turf was placed over this. 
TThile this was beins; done thev laughed and talked with 
the most utter unconcern, got into a quarrel over the ar- 
rangement of the turf, and came near having a fight over 
the corpse. When they had quieted down, a man placed a 
jar of water, in which a hole had been broken so that the 
water could flow out, upon the shoulders of the grandson, 
and he twice went around the pile, letting the water flow 
all around the dead man. The boy was then disrobed and 
blindfolded with his white garment, and so led away that 
he might not again look upon the corpse. In three days he 
was to return and go through what is called the milk serv- 
ice. The funeral pile was then lighted, and as the lurid 
flames leaped up in the gathering twilight, all turned and 
left except the men whose business it was to stay and watch 
the fire. 



Tanjore to Calcutta. 



241 



If it had been a dog they were burning, they could not 
have manifested more indifference, and the whole ceremony 
w T as a startling commentary upon the dark and hopeless re- 
ligion of heathenism. Not one ray of light shone in upon 
the darkness of death, not one promise came to console 
those who were left, no voice from the other world told of a 
better and purer life beyond, and the only hope they had 
for the old man of three score and ten was that he would be 
born into the world again in human form, and not as an 
animal or an insect! Thank God for " the glorious gospel 
of the blessed God," which has " brought life and immor- 
tality to light," and which declares that " though a man die 
yet shall he live again," and that " whosoever liveth and 
believeth (in Christ) shall never die ! " 

The most pleasant episode of our stay at Madras was 
meeting the members of the Methodist Episcopal Mission at 
Veperey. Eev. A. W. Eudisill, D.D., presiding elder of 
the Madras District, is also pastor of a flourishing Euro- 
pean and Eurasian congregation, who worship in a beauti- 
ful church which has adjoining it a comfortable parsonage. 
With Dr. Eudisill and his good wife, Eev. C. P. Hard, 
presiding elder of the Central India District, and others 
whom we met here, we spent some delightful hours and 
received from them much valuable information regarding 
mission-work in India, 

At Madras we took the P. and O. steamer " Eavenna " for 
Calcutta. In reaching our ship, which was anchored in the 
open roadstead about a mile from shore, we had a new ex- 
perience. We had either to take a " surf-boat " or walk a 
long distance out on a breakwater or pier, where we could 
get in a skiff. We preferred the surf-boat, and two natives 
lifted each of us in their strong arms and carried us through 
the surf to their boat. These surf-boats are peculiar to Ma- 
dras. They are great skiffs some twenty feet long and four 
16 



242 



India, the Land of ihv Vedas. 



or five feet deep, Dot fastened by nails, which would be 
wrenched out by the surf, but having the timbers sewn or 
tied together with strings. These strings yield to the surf, 
making the boats very secure, although the water which is 
always in the bottom creates some nervousness. 

Here also we saw the " catamaran which is much used 
by the natives, and which is nothing more than two logs tied 
together and paddled by one oar. You cannot sink such a 
craft, and the boatmen show great skill in the management 
of their boat, over which the waves dash with impunity. 
Before the construction of the present breakwater, it was 
frequently impossible for ships to land at Madras unless the 
sea was perfectly calm; and when it was otherwise, the 
mails could only be carried to and fro by these intrepid 
" catamaran " sailors. 

Our ship made her way lazily up the coast of India, and 
life was about the same as on the other ships where we had 
found a floating home. Most passengers break the monoto- 
ny of a sea voyage by eating twice as many meals as they 
do on land, while the young people kill the time by quar- 
reling and flirting. 

The English who travel in the East and the officers of the 
P. and O. ships all drink whisky at their meals, and the ar- 
ray of black bottles on the dinner-tables is rather alarming 
to any man who hopes for the success of the temperance re- 
form in England. The amount of drinking that is carried 
on on these ships is really terrible, and some of the women 
drink almost as much as the men. Intemperance is one of 
the great vices of the Europeans in the East, and I have no 
doubt but that it has done much to retard the progress of 
missions. I am glad to see that some effort at reform is be- 
ing attempted among the soldiers of the English army in 
India, and I read in a newspaper the other day a general 
order of the Commander-in-chief, which is highly commend- 



Tanjore to Calcutta. 



243 



able. It was to the effect that, having learned of branches 
of the Soldiers' Total Abstinence Association in various reg- 
iments, he desired to give them his official recognition ; that 
he was himself interested in the work being done by the as- 
sociation, but considered it undesirable that such societies 
should exist without the cognizance of the Commander-in- 
chief, and therefore desired that these branches should be 
recognized as regimental institutions, and called on com- 
manding officers to assist them in all ways possible and to 
encourage the movement. 

This Peninsular and Oriental Steam-ship Company, to 
which the " Ravenna " belongs, is the largest navigation 
company in the world, having a capital of three million 
pounds, about fifteen million dollars. It has fifty-six large 
steam-ships, and its lines run from London to China, India, 
Australia, Cape Town, and the Mediterranean ports. It 
pays an annual dividend of seven per cent., and is a well- 
managed company, which would be vastly improved if it 
forbade its officers drinking, at least when on duty. I 
should feel very uneasy if I were on board one of these ships 
in a dangerous storm. 

The sunrises and sunsets are very beautful in this East- 
ern world, especially at sea. I witnessed the most beauti- 
ful one I have ever seen as our steamer lay at anchor near 
the light-ship before entering the large embouchure of the 
Hooghly, on which Calcutta is situated. At first there was 
a faint glow all over the eastern horizon, which gradually 
deepened as if to welcome the coming god of day. Then a 
small crescent of gold appeared above the horizon, which 
grew until half the sun was visible, while the most beauti- 
ful tints glowed in the sky. In a moment the whole great 
disc of the sun rose out of the sea, but the lower lobe seemed 
to elongate as though the ocean was holding to it and was 
loath to give it up, just as the evening before I had seen 



India, the Land of the Vedas. 



the waters leap up to grasp it in their arms and draw it to 
them. This elongation, caused by the refraction, presents 
the appearance of the vast golden dome of a mosque sup- 
ported by a great column. While I looked the waters fell 
away, and clear and beautiful the great orb hung, a vast 
ball of gold and crimson, just above the trysting-place of 
sky and water. So lambent was the air that I could look 
upon it open-eyed, and as I looked I no longer wondered at 
the worship which the superstitious East has given the sun 
in all time. In these southern latitudes the morning breaks 
with a sudden glory, and day leaps upon earth like a giant 
from his sleep. It is worth a long trip just to see these 
wonderful risings and settings of the sun. 



III. 

Calcutta, the Kity of Palaces, 



INDIA has three capitals: Calcutta, the political capital ? 
f the seat of the British viceroyalty ; Delhi, the old Mogul 
capital ; and Benares, the ancient Hindoo capital, the Mecca 
of Brahmanism. Calcutta is a splendid modern city, and 
in many of its features is more Occidental than Oriental. 
Here the Viceroy has his residence, which makes it the cen- 
ter of the British Indian Empire. This Empire, the most 
magnificent possession of Great Britain, embraces a number 
of provinces, and covers a million and a half of square miles, 
with a population of two hundred and fifty millions of peo- 
ple. In addition to this, while there are a number of nom- 
inally independent Rajahs, all these are really subject to 
the British Crown. The government of India is adminis- 
tered by a Viceroy, appointed by the Crown for five years, 
two Governors of the Bombay and Madras presidencies, 
three Lieutenant-governors of the other provinces, Viceroy's 
and Governors' councils, and a legislative council. The 
viceroyalty is the highest office under the British Crown, 
and, considering the number of people governed, and the 
territory ruled, the most important delegated office in the 
world. The incumbent of this important position receives 
a salary of twenty-five thousand pounds a year, and is 
almost absolute in his authority. There is a special Home 
Secretary of Indian Affairs, who is assisted by a council 
usually composed of old Indians. There is no doubt but 
that England is ruling India well, and Lord DufFerin, the 

(245) 



246 



India, the Land of the Veda£. 



present Viceroy, is a wise and judicious governor, but the 
time is coming when India will not be subject to a govern- 
ment eight thousand miles away. English rule has been a 
great blessing to this country, but it has been by no means 
an unmixed good, and England has brought many of her 
vices with her civilization. I have a standing quarrel with 
England for her liquor and opium traffic, and she seems 
not to care how many thousands are ruined by these fearful 
curses, so long as the revenue flows into her treasury. 
Licensed liquor-shops and licensed opium-dens are to be 
seen all over this country, and one of these days England 
will have a terrible account to render. 

Calcutta is situated one hundred miles up the river 
Hooghly, amidst green rice-fields and overgrown jungles. 
It was started by the English as a trading-post in 1690, and 
was for many years the center of operations of the East 
India Trading Company — that remarkable corporation 
which organized originally as a firm of merchants and so 
operated for one hundred and fifty years, begun finally to 
acquire territory, and ultimately founded a great and 
wealthy empire which rose upon the ruins of the Mogul 
power. But when they bought the present site of Calcutta, 
it was but a low, marshy flat; and a jungle, abandoned to 
water-fowl and alligators, then covered the place where 
the citadel now stands, and where every evening the wealthy 
citizens of Calcutta air themselves in their elegant equi- 
pages. Calcutta has now a population of nearly half a 
million, and while she has a number of fine buildings, she 
has hardly enough to entitle her to be par excellence the 
" city of palaces.'' The Government House is a palatial 
building, situated nearly in the center of the city, with the 
Eden Gardens on one side and the Maidan in front. St. 
Paul's Cathedral is a beautiful Gothic structure, with a 
magnificent marble statue of Bishop Heber, and other fine 



Calcutta, the City of Palaces. 



247 



tablets and marble sculpture. A tablet near the entrance 
contains this injunction : " Whosoever thou art that enterest 
this church, leave it not without one prayer to God for thy- 
self, for those who minister, and those who worship here." 

There is no place in all the world where so magnificent 
a spectacle may be seen as that which can be witnessed 
every evening for two or three hours after sunset upon the 
Maidan at this city. The Maidan is a vast open plain a 
mile wide, and extending for three or four miles up and 
down the Hooghly in front of the city. The northern por- 
tion, known as the Esplanade, surrounds the Government 
Buildings, and in front of the latter there is a beautiful 
park called Eden Gardens. The Esplanade is the great 
fashionable drive of Calcutta, and every evening, as soon 
as the sun is down, everybody goes to the Maidan and 
drives or rides up and down the beautiful roads which sur- 
round the Eden Gardens, where the Fort William band 
plays on the grand stand, and w T here there is a dress parade 
of all the magnificence of the city. It is the grandest com- 
bination of Oriental splendor and Occidental culture that is 
to be seen anywhere on the globe. Native princes, with their 
outriders in scarlet and gold ; Indian Nabobs, with Sepoys 
in gay colors going before their coaches to clear the way, 
and two footmen in gorgeous livery behind; Europeans, 
w 7 ith gay equipages and outriders in fantastic costumes; fair 
English ladies and dark Indian princesses; Rajahs, Baboos, 
Eurasians, Bengalese, Parsees, lords and plebeians, move on 
in steady line, three or four abreast, w 7 hile gayly dressed 
horsemen and horsewomen go dashing by, and a throng on 
foot view the brilliant scene from the flowers and palms of 
the gardens, and all the while the splendid band plays its 
choicest airs, the frowning guns of old Fort William look 
down upon the gay scene, and a sea of masts, among which 
float the flags of all nations, from the ships in the harbor form 



248 



ndia, the Land of the Vedas. 



the background to a picture which can be seen nowhere 
save in this proud capital of England's Indian Empire. 

A few miles below Calcutta is " Garden Reach/' the 
palace of the ex-king of Oude, who lives here in " splendid 
exile " on a pension of half a million a year. His palace 
and other buildings are very beautiful, and the grounds, 
which extend along the river for some distance, are laid 
out with great taste. Swarms of pigeons were on the roofs 
and walls, and we could see many tropical birds flying 
among the trees and palm-groves. He also keeps quite a 
menagerie, and just at the corner of the walls which inclose 
his grounds, upon the banks of the river, is a small and 
beautiful kiosk, with a dome-shaped roof, within which Ave 
could see a royal Bengal tiger restlessly pacing up and down. 
Is this intended as a satire upon his own condition? When 
this monarch was dethroned he had four hundred wives, 
but I believe his harem has been reduced to about one-fourth 
that number. He lives in princely style, surrounded by a 
large number of servants and retainers. 

In the palm-clad suburbs of Calcutta is also the country 
house of Warren Hastings, whose brilliant career in India 
was so mingled with good and evil that Macaulay said of 
him: "In his high place he had so borne himself that all 
had feared him, that most had loved him, and that hatred 
itself could deny him no title to glory, except virtue. . . . 
Even now, after the lapse of more than fifty years, the na- 
tives of India still talk of him as the greatest of the En- 
glish; and nurses sing children to sleep with a jingling 
ballad about the fleet horses and richly caparisoned elephants 
of Sahib Warren Hastein." 

Just in the rear of the magnificent post-office building, 
within a gate-way that opens upon a crowded street in the 
center of Calcutta, is a space seventeen by twenty feet, 
paved with black marble, which marks the site of the mem- 



Calcutta, the City of Palaces. 



249 



orable " Black Hole of Calcutta.'' Every school-boy has 
read with bated breath and beating heart the story of the hor- 
rors that were enacted there on that stifling night in June, 
1756. Fort William had been taken by Surajah Dowlab, 
Nabob of Bengal, and the prisoners, one hundred and forty- 
six in number, were thrust into this hole, not twenty feet 
square, and forced to stay there without air or water dur- 
ing the long hours of one of the hottest nights of an Indian 
summer. The horrors of that night will never be known. 
Bribes, expostulations, prayers, and tears all failed to move 
the guards, who, while the prisoners raved, held lights to 
the bars and shouted with laughter at the agonies of their 
victims. When they begged to have the Nabob awakened 
and told of their condition, the answer was that he w r as 
asleep and could not be disturbed. All through the intense 
heat of that night they w T ere kept in that little room 
with only two small, obstructed windows, which would 
have been too close and narrow for one European. When 
the morning came, one hundred and twenty-three blackened 
corpses lay piled upon the floor, and twenty-three ghastly 
figures had just life enough to crawl over the dead bodies 
of their comrades. 

Clive administered a fearful vengeance on this infamous 
Nabob at the battle of Plassey, when, with only three thou- 
sand men, he met and vanquished him with his sixty thou- 
sand troops. This is one of the great historic battles of the 
w T orld on which the fate of empires hung, and Clive, in win- 
ning it, may be said to have established the British suprem- 
acy in the land of the Moguls. 

Calcutta derives its name from Kali (Kali-Ghat), the 
wife of Siva, the destroyer, one of the Hindoo trinity, to 
whom a celebrated temple is erected just south of the city. 
At the time of the annual worship this temple is thronged 
with devotees from far and near, a great number of pilgrims 



250 



India, the Land of the Vedas. 



being in attendance from all parts of India. We were so 
fortunate as to be there at this season, and I have never 
before seen, and never expect again to see, a scene of such 
wild fanaticism. Some distance before we reached the tem- 
ple, the throng was so great that we were forced to alight 
from our carriage, and we moved on amidst a dense crowd 
of naked Fakirs, half-naked Hindoos, yellow-robed priests, 
white-veiled women, dusty pilgrims, and shouting boys. 
Up through a narrow lane we hurried with the rest, and at 
length reached an open court, in the center of which was a 
small, dilapidated-looking temple. The sacrifice of goats 
had just taken place, and the bleeding and decapitated vic- 
tims were lying to the south of the temple, while near by 
stood a blood-bespattered Hindoo, with his knife still in his 
hand. The head of the goat is laid upon a block, and it 
must be severed from the neck at one stroke of the cleaver. 
This sacrifice of goats to Kali is one of the last relics of the 
old Turanian religion, which is still practiced by the civil- 
ized caste people of India. One of the priests — a very in- 
telligent man, who spoke tolerable English — conducted us 
through the different portions of the temple, and explained 
as best he could the various parts of the worship. On cer- 
tain days only can Kali be seen, and none but the high 
caste Brahmans can enter her temple. The others must go 
int ) a small court between two parts of the tenrple, and 
there through a small opening obtain a look at the dread- 
ful goddess. We found this little court packed with a wild, 
struggling crowd of fanatical devotees, each striving to see 
her whom they had come so far to worship. With diffi- 
culty our conductor forced our way to the required place, 
and at last, looking in, we saw as mad a crowd of priests 
and Hindoos within as were without, bowing and chanting 
and paying their devotions to a hideous-looking deity with 
a horrible black face and mouth streaming with blood, hav- 



Calcutta, the City of Palaces. 



251 



ing a string of human skulls around her neck. Kali is the 
goddess of murderers and robbers, and while these worship 
her as their patron, others worship her through fear, exem- 
plifying the answer which Burke made when, at the trial 
of Warren Hastings, it was urged in his defense that the 
people of Benares had built a temple to him, he replied that 
the Brahmans " worshiped some gods from love and others 
from fear; that he knew they erected shrines not only to the 
benignant deities of light and plenty, but also to the fiends 
who preside over small-pox and murder; nor did he at all 
dispute the claim of Mr. Hastings to be admitted into such 
a Pantheon " — a reply which Macaulay characterizes as 
one of the finest that was ever made in Parliament. The 
goddess Kali was worshiped by the Thugs, that mysterious 
and terrible organization which once filled India with so 
much horror. They always went to her temple and pre- 
sented their offerings before entering on any murderous ex- 
pedition, and when they returned they divided the spoils 
with her. They were not ordinary robbers, but their dep- 
redations were made only upon travelers. Acting on the 
maxim that " Dead men tell no tales," they invariably put 
their victims to death, usually by strangling with a cord, 
and then buried them out of sight. 

From Kali's shrine w 7 e went through a long lane to a 
shrine dedicated to Siva. On either side of this lane were 
rows of mendicants — blind, deformed, lame, ulcerated — al- 
together a group of the most pitiable objects I ever saw r . 
We exhausted our stock of coppers on them, calling forth 
many expressions of gratitude from the poor creatures. 
These rows of miserable humauity terminated in a group of 
naked, muttering Fakirs, smeared with ashes, squatting 
upon the pavement, and receiving alms and worship from 
the Hindoos. One of these, who was in a kind of dirty pa- 
vilion, w T as, we were told, a hermit, and a " very holy man." 



252 



India, the Land of the Vedas. 



Siva's shrine was under a dome supported by four col- 
umns, and consisted, as it does everywhere, of the " Lin- 
gam/' also called Mahadeo, which represents the creative 
principle, and is a conical stone coming up several inches 
out of the pavement. Around this shrine was a wild mob, 
chiefly women, more intense and fanatical even than those 
whom Ave had seen worshiping Kali. They were throwing 
rice and flowers upon the object of their worship, and pour- 
ing over it the sacred water of the Ganges. We climbed 
up some steps which led to an upper room, and stood there 
for some time looking upon the mad, ignorant devotees, and 
from the bottom of our hearts we thanked God that we had 
been born in a Christian land. 

In going to this temple we passed through the native por- 
tion of the city, which presents a marked contrast to the 
magnificence of the European quarter. The latter is laid out 
on a broad scale, with wide, well-paved streets and fine bou- 
levards, while in the former the streets are narrow and dirty, 
the houses of mud, and there is a general air of squalor and 
poverty everywhere. The Bengalese. the inhabitants of this 
portion of India, are inferior, physically and morally, to the 
people of other sections, and are to other Hindoos what the 
Italian is to the English. They have been so long a servile 
and conquered race that they have entirely lost their man- 
liness (if they ever had any), for during many ages they 
have been trampled on by men of bolder and more hardy 
breed. The climate has made them soft and effeminate, 
and I doubt if there is a single Bengalese in England's Se- 
poy army. They are not white like Europeans, nor red 
like American Indians, nor yellow like the Chinese, nor 
black like the Africans, but of a dark, nut-brown color, with 
straight, black hair, high foreheads, and heads shaped like 
the Caucasians. They all wear turbans of various colors, 
and often a man will have enough cloth in his turban to 



Calcutta, the City of Palaces. 



253 



clothe him. It is an inscrutable mystery to me how they 
can wind and twist their turbans so fancifully and grace- 
fully around their heads. As Ave drove through the crowd- 
ed streets the moving mass of colored turbans looked 
like the countless flowers of a garden. When they wear 
any thing around their bodies they wear a kind of skirt, 
caught up in the middle so as to form the semblance of a 
bifurcated garment. They have a way of squatting down 
or sitting on their heels which would be impossible to 
an American. But they will sit for hours in a broiling sun 
that would give an Anglo-Saxon a case of coup de soleil 
in ten minutes. 

Every night that we were in Calcutta we heard most 
hideous screams, almost demoniacal in their sound. At 
first we thought them the cries of human beings in dire dis- 
tress, but we soon learned that they were from the army of 
jackals who prowl about the city after night-fall without let 
or hinderance. They are entirely harmless, and are the 
public scavengers, never being visible by day, but coming 
forth from their hiding-places in the sewers and dark re- 
cesses as soon as it is night, to make their rounds and sere- 
nade the city. Those who have had the night made hid- 
eous by a company of cats upon the roof can form some 
conception of these cries, save that the serenade of cats is 
musical beside that of the jackals. 

The crows also have the freedom of the city, and their 
cawing is heard everywhere. They are never killed or 
disturbed in any way, and myriads of them are seen every- 
where. Long impunity has made them very bold, and 
they would fly into our open windows at the hotel, and we 
would frequently see them in the corridors. A gentleman 
told me that unless the servant was on the lookout they 
would fly into the dining-room and rob the breakfast-table. 
Great flocks of kites, a kind of large hawk, are also to be 



254 



India, the Land of the Vedas. 



seen in all parts of the city, and with the crows constitute 
the day scavengers, as the jackals are the night scaven- 
gers. 

The museum, a magnificent building with its fine archaeo- 
logical, mineralogical, paleontological, zoological, and other 
collections; the splendid Bank of Bengal, built of marble 
and granite, with its principal business room one hundred 
and fifty feet long and beautiful frescoed ceiling forty feet 
high ; the zoological gardens, where we saw snow-white pea- 
fowls, Malayan tapirs, great hornbills from Malay, camelo- 
pards fifteen feet high, with necks six feet long, royal Ben- 
gal tigers, lions, leopards, orang-outangs, polar bears, etc. ; 
all these were full of interest, and we were well repaid for 
our visit to them. But the most interesting excursion we 
made while at Calcutta was to Serampore, where Carey, 
Marshman, and "Ward, the three devoted Baptist mission- 
aries, established the first mission in Bengal in 1793. The 
story of Carey has often been told. He was a poor shoe-mak- 
er in the interior of England who studied and fitted him- 
self for the ministry. Having been licensed to preach by 
the Baptist Church, he read " Cook's Voyage around the 
World," and became impressed with the conviction that the 
gospel ought to be carried to the heathen. Despite the de- 
termined opposition which he encountered, one brother tell- 
ing him that when the Lord got ready to convert the hea- 
thens, he would do it without his help, he at last started on 
his evangelistic tour. On account of the opposition of the 
East India Company to missions, he was obliged to establish 
himself at Serampore, Mteen miles from Calcutta, then a 
Danish possession. Here he labored alone for seven years 
without a convert, but at the end of that time he baptized 
his first convert, Karichna Pal, in the Hooghly, which is a 
branch of the Ganges. The baptism took place near his 
house, and soon afterward a great flood came and carried 



Calcutta, the City of Palaces. 



255 



Carey's house away, and the natives said the Ganges did it 
to avenge the profanation. The site of the house is now in 
the river, but the place was pointed out to us, and also the 
spot where this first baptism took place. 

In 1800 Carey was joined by Ward and Marshman, and the 
three established a press and devoted themselves assiduous- 
ly, not only to their evangelical labors, but also to translat- 
ing and publishing the Word of God in various Eastern 
dialects. They also established a college of high order, and 
in 1818 erected with their own funds a magnificent, mass- 
ive building, in which a fine institution is still in existence 
under the presidency of Rev. E. S. Somers. We went 
through the college building and over the grounds, which 
are admirably situated on the banks of the Ganges, com- 
manding a fine view, and just opposite Barrackpores, the 
residence of the Viceroy. We also saw Carey's chapel and 
Marshman's house, the latter a large building given to the 
college as an endowment by the Danish Government. A 
large jute-mill now stands where the printing-office former- 
ly was. The house where Carey lived after his marriage to 
his second wife, who was a Danish countess, was pointed 
out to me. 

While Carey and his devoted co-laborers were engaged in 
planting the gospel in Bengal, they were supporting them- 
selves and carrying on the work from their salaries. It is 
stated that Dr. Carey received for thirty years more than a 
thousand rupees a month — equal to six thousand dollars per 
annum — as professor in the College of Fort William at Cal- 
cutta, and translator to the East India Company; and Mr. 
Ward received as much more from the printing-office ; Mr. 
and Mrs. Marshman about the same from similar work — 
and yet while receiving these princely salaries they ate at 
a common table and drew only twelve rupees a month from 
the common sum, all the rest being devoted to missionary 



256 



India, the Land of the Vedas. 



work. The publication of the Scriptures in Chinese alone 
cost one hundred thousand dollars. 

The grave-yard where these heroes are buried, which has 
been well called the Westminster Abbey of India, lies be- 
hind some old buildings within fifty feet of the principal 
street, in the old village of Serampore, and only five min- 
utes' drive from the station. It contains about two acres, 
and is surrounded by a high brick wall. All the graves 
show signs of age, and the whole place has a deserted and 
decaying look. Carey's grave is in the south-west corner 
of the in closure, to the left of the entrance, and is a square, 
solid mausoleum, with an Ionic column at each corner, sur- 
mounted by a dome. Carey wrote his own epitaph, which 
is inscribed on a tablet in the side of the mausoleum: 
"William Carey. Born 17th of August, 1761. Died 9th 
of June, 1834. 

A wretched, poor, and helpless worm, 
On thy kind arms I fall." 

On the right of the entrance, one hundred and twenty 
feet from Carey's tomb and facing it, Marshman lies buried. 
His tomb is an oblong, square mausoleum, seventeen by 
twenty-one feet, supported by ten square Ionic columns, with 
a square roof, sloping up to the center, which is surmounted 
by an urn. Immediately facing the entrance, and one hun- 
dred feet from it, is the tomb of William Ward, a round, 
dome-shaped mausoleum, about fifty feet in circumference, 
open on all sides, except on the east where the tablet stands, 
and supported by ten Doric columns. We stood for some 
time with uncovered heads beside the graves of these heroic 
men, and then plucking some leaves from a tree that grew 
just over the place where Carey's dust is awaiting the res- 
urrection morn, we slowly left the quiet old grave-yard and 
returned to the busy, bustling city. 



IV. 

Among the Himalayas, 



fHE Arabs, in their poetical language, call Asia " The 
Roof of the World," while Himalayas mean in Sanskrit, 
" The Halls of Snow." These mountains, which are rightly 
named, form the longest and highest chain in the world, 
stretching in an irregular line from the defile above Cash- 
mere on the north-west, through which the Indus penetrates 
to the plains of the Punjab, to the southern bend by which 
the Sampu or Dihong river enters India to join the Brah- 
mapootra. Their trend is from south-east to north-west, 
almost belting the continent and forming the northern 
boundary of India, thus shutting out that country from the 
rest of Asia. The total length of the chain is about two 
thousand miles, and the total breadth about one hundred 
and eighty miles. The mean height is twenty thousand 
feet, though a large number of peaks go far beyond 
this. Mount Everest, the culminating point of the range, 
twenty-nine thousand and two feet above the sea, is the high- 
est peak in the wwld, and is excelled only by the Mount- 
ains of the Moon. Think of five miles of land lifted into 
the air! Kinchinjunga is twenty-eight thousand one hun- 
dred and seventy-eight feet, while near the source of the 
Setlej there are forty peaks, each higher than the highest 
peak of the Andes. 

Mount St. Elias, the highest peak on the American con- 
tinent, is not quite twenty thousand feet, and Mount Gray, 
the highest of the Rocky Mountains, is a little over seven- 
17 (257) 



258 



India, Vie Land of the Vedas. 



teen thousand feet, while Mont Blanc is only fifteen thou- 
sand eight hundred and ten feet. I stood on the terrace of 
the hotel at Darjeelitig and counted twelve peaks, all of 
which were over twenty thousand feet high; and one morn- 
ing I walked half a mile to Observatory Hill, and just after 
sunrise saw the whole vast snowy range, stretching like " an 
army of archangels " from north to south for two hundred 
miles, and the lowest part visible was over fifteen thousand 
feet. 

I shall never forget the morning I first saw the Kinchin- 
junga group. The day we reached Darjeeling, the clouds 
and fog were everywhere, and not a peak was visible. But 
the next morning, a little after daylight, Mr. Pal more came 
to my room in a grea tstate of excitement, and told me to 
come quickly. I dressed as rapidly as possible and hurried 
out on the terrace, and there stood revealed in matchless 
splendor, only forty miles away, grand old Kinchinjunga 
and its companion giants. The snow-line in the Himalayas 
is seventeen thousand feet, so that more than eleven thou- 
sand feet of eternal snow was visible, and the mountain tow- 
ered twenty thousand feet above the level at which we were 
standing. The sky was just beginning to glow with the 
dawn, and the snows were bathed in a purple light that was 
inexpressibly beautiful. The peaks " cut the tremulous 
sky" far overhead, the water-falls called from the distant 
precipices, the white clouds were piled in the valleys, the 
hushed and holy air seemed full of the beauty of the scene, 
and while we looked with hearts that almost stood still the 
sweet-voiced chimes from the English church, in the town 
at our feet, rang out clear and musical like a Gloria in ex- 
cehis. Just then Kinchinjunga's snows caught the first rays 
of the rising sun, and it seemed as if God himself were com- 
ing to illumine the universe which he had created. One 
after another, the other peaks caught the light upon their 



Among the Himalayas. 



259 



fields of snow, which blushed and glowed like mountains of 
opals, and sent back the reflection as if they were the shin- 
ing gates of the heavenly city. 

The Hindoos make the peaks of the Himala} 7 as the dwell- 
ing-place of their gods. Around these summits gathers the 
whole Hindoo mythology, and they are clothed with all the 
sanctity both of Sinai and Calvary. There does not only 
God dwell and give the law, but from them issue the sacred 
rivers which are like the waters of the River of Life which 
issue out of the throne of God. 

Another morning we rose at daylight and galloped on 
ponies over the hills and up the sides of the mountains six 
miles to Mount Senchal, the only point near Darjeeling 
from which Mount Everest is visible. As our sturdy little 
ponies climbed up through the snow, we met the fog and 
feared that after all our trip was in vain. But just as we 
reached the highest point and clambered up a pile of rocks, 
the sun burst through the parted clouds, and for full five 
minutes Mount Everest, one hundred and fifty miles distant 
and just over the tops of the nearer mountains, with all 
the glorious heights around and in front of it, stood re- 
vealed and shone in the sudden light like the Delectable 
Mountains. 

Bathed in the tenderest purple of distance, 
Tinted and shadowed by pencils of air, 

it stood, like an aerial sentinel keeping w T atch over the 

Chasms and caverns where Day is a stranger, 
Garners where storeth his treasure the Thunder, 
The Lightning his falchion, his arrows the Hail. 

This view is perhaps not so striking as the nearer one of 
the Kinchinjunga group, but it is grand beyond concep- 
tion, and w r e stood awed and reverent in the presence of 
the highest known summit in the world, which is fitly de- 
scribed only by its native name, Deodhunga — God-height 



260 



India, the Land of tike Vedas. 



The sublime prospect before us was worth a journey around 
the world, and I never expect to see another such sight un- 
til the walls and turrets of the New Jerusalem break upon 
my view. We were inexpressibly thrilled, and felt that 
God had been very good to us in permitting us to look upon 
the grandest of his works. 

Darjeeling, which signifies "up in the clouds," is reached 
by half a day's journey from Calcutta through the steaming, 
fertile plain of Bengal to the Ganges ; then a night's ride 
through cotton, sugar-cane, rice, and pulse fields to Silt 
guri; after which comes six hours more over a saucy little 
narrow-gauge, which climbs from the plain below to a 
height of seventy-five hundred feet in fifty miles, perform- 
ing the most extraordinary engineering feats of any road 
in the world. This road was completed on the 4th of J uly, 
1881, and has the narrowest gauge in the world, the rails 
being just two feet apart. The gradient was originally 
nearly three hundred feet to the mile, but it was impracti- 
cable for drawing heavy loads, and, by a system of loops 
and reverses, it has been reduced to two hundred and ten 
feet to the mile. There are five complete loops, the track 
describing a circle and going over the point which it had 
passed a few moments previous; and four reverses, these 
reverses being made to overcome the heavy grade and be- 
ing what in American railroad parlance are called " Y's." 
In its ascent, the train begins to climb through a forest 
of exceeding beauty, with lofty trees, many of them covered 
with a canopy of flowers, and others with trailing plants of 
strange and weird-like shapes; then crosses bridges span- 
ning yawning canons where the Indian jungle is seen in 
its richest luxuriance; hangs over giddy precipices which 
make your head swim; reaches heights which command 
grand outlooks over the gray, dusty plains and the gleam- 
ing, tawny rivers; passes forests of tree ferns, palms and 



Among the Himalayas. 



261 



bamboos ; runs between tea-gardens with their white, myr- 
tle-like flowers, and by villages of bamboo-huts where Ne- 
paulese, Bhooteans, Thibetans, and Lepchas, afford new 
ethnological studies ; and at last reaches Darjeeling, a town 
of hills and hollows, white bungalows and English villas, 
sanitariums and tea-plantations. 

The town of Darjeeling consists of a bazaar occupying 
the center of a basin, while the residences of the European 
inhabitants occupy the crest of a wooded ridge some three 
miles long and surrounded on three sides by abysmal ra- 
vines. On the northern and eastern sides of these ravines 
are clustered the native huts. The mean temperature is 
fifty-six degrees Fahrenheit, but it frequently has heavy 
snow-falls in December and January. The climate is moist, 
the average rain-fall being one hundred and twenty inches. 
It is the center of a territory twenty-five miles in extent 
which was ceded to the British Government by the Rajah 
of Sikkim in 1835. It is bounded by Bhootea on the east, 
by Nepaul on the west, and by Independent Sikkim on the 
north. All these are independent, sturdy mountain tribes, 
loving their hills and valleys, and ready to fight for the 
maintenance of their autonomy. 

Next to the mountains, that which interested me most 
in Darjeeling were the people, who were entirely different 
from any that I have ever seen before. Ethnology is one 
of the most fascinating of studies, and in making the circuit 
of the globe you meet with every variety of the genus 
homo, but these were altogether new specimens which we 
encountered in the Himalayas. Nepaul, Thibet, Sikkim, 
and Bhootea are all within sight from these lofty elevations, 
and the people of these countries, together with Lepchas, 
Bengalese, Limboos, and Cabulese, are all to be seen in the 
bazaars and at work on the tea-plantations. The Lepchas 
are the aborigines, and are distinctly Mongolian, being low in 



262 



India, the Land of the Vedas. 



stature, with broad, flat faces, oblique eyes, and high cheek- 
bones. They have no word for plow in their language, and 
follow the nomadic mode of raising crops by jihuni cultiva- 
tion. This consists in selecting a patch of virgin soil, clear- 
ing it of forest and jungle, and scraping up the surface with 
the rudest agricultural implements. When, in the course of 
three or four years, the productive powers of the cleared 
land become exhausted, it is abandoned and a new site 
chosen, and so on ad infinitum. It is obvious that with this 
system of cultivation it would require a large tract of land 
to support even a moderate sized family. The Lepchas have 
a tradition of the flood, during which a couple escaped to 
the top of Teendong, a mountain in Independent Sikkim, 
not far from Darjeeling. 

The Xepaulese form over sixty-five per cent, of the pop- 
ulation of the Darjeeling hills, and they are immigrating in 
yearly increasing numbers. They are well-made, intelligent- 
looking men, and are a pushing, thriving, prolific race. 
They are largely employed as domestic servants, and in the 
tea-plantutions, and many of them are engaged in trade. 

The Bhooteas are a noisy, troublesome, drunken set, and 
are the "hewers of wood and drawers of water " around 
Darjeeling. They are tall and of large frame, and of the 
Mongolian stock. The Bhootea women are the porters of 
Darjeeling, and as soon as we landed at the station we were 
surrounded by a noisy crowd, each one trying to get our 
baggage to carry to the hotel. Their capacity for carry- 
ing heavy loads is remarkable, and there is a tolerably well- 
authenticated story of one carrying a grand piano from 
Punkabari to Darjeeling, a distance of some twenty miles, 
in three days, and arriving quite fresh at the end of the 
journey. I do not vouch for this story, however, and only 
tell it as it was told to me. 

The Thibetans are the most peculiar of all these races, 



Among the Himalayas. 



2C3 



and if in a mixed crowd you pick out the very dirtiest man 
or woman you can find, you may be sure of having found 
a Thibetan. They cross the snowy range about Novem- 
ber, bringing with them rock-salt, skins, sometimes gold- 
dust, and various other articles, besides large flocks of 
sheep and goats. They remain daring the winter, and 
trade these off for tobacco, cloth, piece goods, and other 
commodities, and return in the early spring. During their 
stay they live in small, light tents, which they bring with 
them. They practice polyandry, and every woman has 
four or five husbands. Sometimes a woman will marry a 
whole family of brothers. We saw some of these women 
walking along the road with their liege lords, and they al- 
ways seemed to be the heads of the families. They can- 
not be mistaken, for they have a habit of daubing their 
faces over with a preparation of some sort of gum, which 
looks like brown lacquer and gives them a horrible appear- 
ance. The Thibetans worship a living Lama or Priest, the 
successor of Buddha, who is both their spiritual and tem- 
poral sovereign. When the Lama dies they search for a 
successor who has certain birth-marks, and when he is 
found, even though he may be the poorest peasant or coolie, 
he is at once installed at the head of Church and State. 
The present Lama is a boy eleven years old, a regent ad- 
ministering the government during his minority. In com- 
mon with most of these mountaineers, they worship evil 
spirits. They pay but little attention to the good spirits — 
" Why should we? " they say. " The good spirits do us no 
harm ; the evil spirits, who dwell in every rock, grove, and 
mountain, are constantly at work, and to them we must 
pray, for they hurt us." 

Among some of these races, every tribe has a priest-doc- 
tor, who neither knows nor attempts to practice the healing 
art, but whose chief business is to cast out the devils which 



264 



India, the Land of the Vedas. 



are supposed to cause all human ailments. His sacred uten- 
sils are the phoorpah, " devil-driver," a kind of dagger, and 
dorji, " thunder-bolt," a short spear with three prongs (Dar- 
jeeiing is derived from this latter name). The priest stands 
with the phoorpah in one hand and the dorji in the other, 
and as he throws them pronounces an incantation which is 
supposed to charm the evil spirits away. These people also 
have a singular custom of sprinkling the front of their 
houses all over with little red dots and blotches which they 
imagine will keep the demons out of their homes. As our 
little train steamed through the main street of Khersiong, 
only a few feet wide and crowded with men, women, and 
children of all the multifarious races of Central Asia, every 
house had these peculiar and disfiguring marks. 

A stroll through the Darjeeling bazaar on "Fair Day" 
was exceedingly interesting. The bazaar is at the foot of 
the hills in a kind of hollow, and is a large square flanked 
on either side by the native shops and an old Hindoo tem- 
ple. The people were there fro in the entire surrounding 
country for fifty and one hundred miles, and were squatted 
in this open space, with their goods around them, leaving a 
narrow path for the throngs of buyers. Every imaginable 
commodity was for sale, from tin whistles, Bhootea girdles, 
and praying machines, to the softest silks and finest fabrics 
woven from the wool of Cashmere goats. They were a stur- 
dy, independent-looking set, picturesque even in their dirt. 
I stood for more than hour looking at the strange scene. 
A Thibetan woman, with a horribly painted face, sat near 
me, with closed eyes, whirling a praying machine, while two 
of her husbands were indifferently looking on ; a fantastic- 
ally dressed Lepchan beggar was delighting a crowd of chil- 
dren with his dancing, and gathering in all their coppers; a 
group of Bhootea women, their broad faces shining with 
good nature and mirth, and their ears, necks, arms, and an- 



kles loaded with gold and silver ornaments, were trying to 
sell some poultry so attenuated that they looked as if they 
had been raised for their bones only ; some stalwart Nepau- 
lese, on their hardy little mountain ponies, dashed along the 
road at a mad gallop; tall Bhooteas could be seen all 
through the crowd, each one with the inevitable Kukery (a 
sheath containing three knives) stuck in his belt; hill wom- 
en, with the long bamboo basket swung to their backs, were 
everywhere; while the shouting, singing, laughing, talking, 
and noise of horns and drums were simply terrific. 

An old Buddhist temple, one of the few remaining in In- 
dia, and said to be very ancient, is in the Bhooiea Bustea, 
the native quarter under the hill. It is certainly dirty and 
ugly enough to entitle it to all the antiquity claimed, and 
the old priest who is the presiding genius of the place is as 
repulsive-looking as Mephistopheles himself. In the vesti- 
bule is a praying machine, consisting of a cylinder about 
six feet high, placed upright and filled with printed prayers. 
This is whirled by a crank underneath, and every revolu- 
tion is equivalent to the utterance of all the prayers within 
the cylinder. A number of smaller cylinders are ranged 
around the same vestibule, all of which are whirled in the 
same way. 

All over the Bustea are to be seen strips of white cotton, 
from a few inches to a yard wide and from ten to twenty 
feet long, covered with printed prayers and attached to 
poles, trees, and fences. Every time the flag flutters in the 
breeze it is equivalent to repeating the prayers inscribed 
on it. 

It is a literal verification of the story of the man who 
wrote out an appropriate prayer, pasted it on the wall at the 
head of his bed, and every night before retiring pointed to 
it and said, " Them's my sentiments, Lord ! " 

We wonder at the ignorance and superstition of these 



266 



India, the Land of the Vedas. 



poor people with their praying machines and fluttering 
cloths, and yet how many prayers offered in Christian 
churches are mechanical and formal, like the " vain repeti- 
tions " of the heathen, or the whirling cylinders of the Bud- 
dhist priests. Certainly the tongue may become a praying 
machine as truly, as are these wheels, and I fear that all 
the praying machines are not in heathen lands. 

Whosoever visits India and does not go to Darjeeling, or 
to some other hill station in the Himalayas, has missed one 
of the most interesting spots on the globe. We have found 
no place which combined so many attractive and interest- 
ing features, and which so well repaid us for the detour we 
made to reach it. 



¥. 

Benares, the $acred Sty of the Hindoos, 



§ERARES, Rome, Mecca, and Jerusalem are the four 
sacred cities of the world, and around these centers 
gather the religious faiths of nine-tenths of the human race. 
The Brahman's Mecca, the citadel of Hindooism, is one of 
the oldest known habitations of men, being at least twenty- 
five centuries old, and is one of the cradles of history and 
religion. Before Romulus founded Rome, and when Ath- 
ens was an insignificant village, Benares was already famous. 
When Babylon and Nineveh were struggling for suprem- 
acy, and Tyre w T as beginning to extend her borders and 
plant her colonies, her power and greatness were already 
assured. It is called both the Oxford and Canterbury of 
India, and has been the seat of learning and sanctity for 
ages unknown. Its ancient records are uncertain, and the 
first glimpse we have of it is twelve hundred years before 
Christ — about the period of the Judges in Hebrew history. 
Even then, however, it was but "an authentic fragment of 
the oldest past." Here Buddha preached his new faith cent- 
uries before Christ was born in Judea — a faith which still 
sways a larger portion of mankind than any other. Here 
Brahmanism, Buddhism, and Mohammedanism have suc- 
cessively reigned, and all these are destined certainly and 
surely yet to give way before the advancing light of Chris- 
tianity. Brahman legends assert that Benares occupies the 
site of the ancient Casi, which was formerly suspended in 
space between the zenith and the nadir, like Mahomet's tomb. 

(267) 



268 



India, the Land of the Vedas. 



Benares is situated on the banks of the sacred Ganges, 
a turbid, muddy stream, which much resembles the Missis- 
sippi. But around that dirty, sluggish river there cluster 
such associations as belong to no other stream in the world. 
Other rivers have poetic, patriotic, or historic associations. 
The ancient Romans kept watch on the Tiber as the mod- 
ern Germans keep watch on the Rhine. But the Hindoos 
worship the Ganges as the ancient Egyptians worshiped the 
Isile, and every drop of its water is sacred in their eyes. 
It seems to them as it comes from the mountains, the sacred 
mountains which are the abode of the Hindoo trinity, to 
come from those dwellers, to be the life-blood of those gods. 
Hence the water of the Ganges has to the Hindoo all the 
virtue and divine power that belongs in the Christian sys- 
tem to the blood of Christ. 

All great religions are born near rivers, and are connect- 
ed with rivers — Brahmanism and Buddhism are inseparably 
connected with the Ganges; Mohammedanism, with the Eu- 
phrates; the Egyptian, with the Nile; and Christianity, 
with the Jordan. Water has been in all ages the emblem 
of purity, and is also a fitting symbol of that immortality 
which lies at the foundation of all human belief. 

Benares has a population of about a quarter of a million, 
and is a labyrinth of narrow alleys, rich with shrines and 
minarets and carved oriels. Holy men and not less holy 
bulls throng the streets and block the way of the traveler. 
Palaces and mud hovels, golden temples and squalid pov- 
erty are side by side, and the dusty streets present a strange 
mixture of all varieties of Oriental life. The broad and 
stately flights of steps descending from the palaces and tem- 
ples and sacred wells to the bathing-places along the Ganges 
are worn every day by the footsteps of countless multitudes 
of worshipers, and the drums and banners and gaudy idols 
of the populace make a picture which baffles description. 



Benares, the Sacred City of the Hindoos. 269 



The most striking scene in Benares is that presented on 
the banks of the Ganges in the early morning when all 
faithful Hindoos come down to the holy water to bathe. 

Taking a boat at the observatory of Rajah Mann, you 
row up the river to the Mosque of Aurungzebe, whose tall 
minarets rise above all the domes and towers of Benares, 
and then let your boat float down stream. The whole west- 
ern bank for three miles is lined with palaces and temples, 
from which broad flights of steps called ghats descend to the 
water's brink. Just after sunrise these are thronged with 
men and women going down to the water or coming up 
from it, while thousands are in the river itself, bathing, 
drinking the water, bowing to the rising sun, and worship- 
ing the river. The temples, palaces, and mosques are four 
and five stories high, and are among the finest in India, the 
architecture being of the most elaborate description. The 
scene is the most remarkable and striking in India, if not in 
the world. The domes of a thousand temples, the gilded 
minarets of three hundred mosques, the fretted walls, porches, 
and towers of scores of palaces, and the long flights of stone 
steps, with the vast multitude of men and women in all the 
colors of the rainbow, added to the smoke of the burning 
ghats where half a dozen bodies were being cremated, made 
a picture w 7 hich will always live in my memory. 

We anchored our boat just opposite the burning ghat of 
Jelsac, where several dead bodies were lying on the low 
bank, their feet just laved by the sacred water, while one 
was half burned on the top of a funeral pile. While we 
watched, the attendants uncovered one of the corpses, and 
we could see the cold, still face of a man in the prime of life. 
They raised him up in a sitting posture, filled a jar with the 
sacred water, into which they put rice and straw, and then 
poured the whole over him. They then wrapped a white 
cloth around him, put the yellow string of the Brahman 



270 



India, the Land of the Vedas. 



around his neck and shoulders, and laid him on the ready 
piled-up wood, folding him up into as small a compass as 
possible. They then piled the wood around him and set fire 
to it. Another one we saw burned was the body of an old 
man. His widow, clad all in white, came down the steps, 
and, when he had been laid on the pyre, put the wood over 
him herself. She then went three times around the pile 
with a lighted torch, after which she was led away by two 
old men who seemed to be her relatives. Sixty years ago 
this woman would have burned herself on the pyre of her 
husband, but in 1829 "Suttee" was suppressed by the Brit- 
ish Government. 

In some places the foundations of the temples have given 
way, and they are partly sunken— fit emblems of the decay- 
ing system there taught. 

The Hindoos believe that a peculiarly happy fate awaits 
the man who passes from the sacred city into the sacred 
river, and it is an article of their faith that the vilest sinner, 
if he dies within ten miles of the Ganges, is sure of coming 
into the world again under the happiest and most favorable 
circumstances. Hence, many come to this river to die, 
which is the meaning of all the palaces that line the river's 
bank ; the builders preparing them for themselves and fam- 
ilies when the time of their departure arrives. 

We saw a number of poor, wretched people in an appar- 
ently dying condition, lying on the- banks of the river, hav- 
ing been brought there by their friends to die. Some of 
them had attendants, while others were alone in their mis- 
ery and suffering. Having once been brought there, they 
cannot again be taken away, and even though they should 
linger for weeks, they must remain there until they die. 
One poor old man was lying with closed eyes and appar- 
ently unconscious, in the middle of the dusty road, with the 
scorching sun beating down upon him. 



Benares, the Sacred City of the Hindoos. 



271 



Nothing that I have seen has so impressed me with the 
fearful burden of idolatry and heathenism as these scenes 
which I witnessed in Benares, and especially this one, of 
these dying people on the banks of the Ganges. And yet 
there are those who say that these people should be let alone 
in their religion! — that missions "interfere" with them! 
They interfere with them as the good Samaritan interfered 
with the man who fell among thieves; as the physician in 
the hospital interferes with those who are dying of cholera; 
as one who sees a brother at his side struck by a deadly 
serpent applies his mouth to the wound to suck the poison 
from the blood. 

The corruptions and degradations of Brahmanism not 
only fully justify, but demand, that the attempt be made to 
give the Hindoos a better religion. Originating in Mono- 
theism, Brahmanism next worshiped the powers of nature, 
then named these ; they intermarried and multiplied until 
the modern Hindoo worships three hundred and thirty 
million divinities. Thus what was playfully charged of 
Athens, that she had more gods than men, is actually true 
of India. The Pantheon of the Hindoo is crowded with 
birds, beasts, and fowls; men, monkeys, and bulls, and the 
very excrement of the cow is sacred in his eyes. All 
this arises largely from his belief in transmigration; his 
friends and relatives, as well as his deities, have come back 
to earth in animal form, and hence all animal life is sacred 
in his sight. It is a sin of the deepest dye for a Hindoo to 
take the life of the smallest insect. 

But while Hindooism has a thousand shapes, spreading 
out its arms like a mighty banyan-tree, its root is one — 
pantheism. All beings are but one being, and every life 
is but a part of the Great Life. It has no standard of mo- 
rality or virtue, but is only a means of propitiating angry 
deities. It is unspeakably vile and obscene in its Phallic 



272 



India, the Land of the Vedas. 



worship, and has nothing whatever to commend it, so far 
as I have been able to discover. It is as far from the mo- 
rality and religion of the Vedas as Mohammedanism is from 
Christianity, and is very much inferior to Buddhism. In 
fact, I am inclined to believe, with some writer, that Bud- 
dhism is the very best uninspired religion. There is noth- 
ing impure about Buddhism, and it inculcates good morals. 

Hindooism is largely built up on the system of caste, 
which prevails so universally throughout India. This sys- 
tem is founded on the Institutes of Menu, the oldest system 
of law extant save the Pentateuch. According to this code, 
Brahma caused the Brahman or priest to proceed from his 
mouth, the Kshatriya or soldier class from his arm, 
the Vaisya or merchant class from his thigh, and the 
Sudra or peasant from his foot. All others are outcasts. 
The lowest caste of all is the Chandala, who is the offspring 
of a Sudra man and a Brahman woman, to whom food 
must be given in a potsherd, but not by the hand of the 
giver; who must dress in the clothing of the dead, and 
whose sole wealth must be dogs and asses. 

This caste binds these people in iron fetters which it is 
almost impossible for them to break, and this is one of the 
greatest difficulties with which missionaries have to con- 
tend. Two men of different caste cannot eat together or 
even touch each other, nor will a high caste Brahman touch 
one of another race. The Brahman's body is sacred, and 
he is not to be punished for any crime. From the Brah- 
mans the priests, legislators, and judges were chosen. A 
man who barely assaulted a Brahman, with the intention 
of hurting him, would be whirled about for a century in 
the hell termed Tamasa. He who smote a Brahman with 
only a blade of grass would be born an inferior quadruped 
through twenty-one transmigrations. But he who should 
shed the blood of a Brahman, save in battle, would be man- 



Benares, the Sacred City of the Hindoos. 273 



gled by animals in his next birth for as many years as there 
were particles of dust rolled up by the blood shed. If a 
Sudra (a low caste man) sat upon the same seat with a 
Brahman, he was to be gashed in the part offending. 

Thus a few hundred thousand men have for thirty cent- 
uries held two hundred millions of their fellow-countrymen 
in this fearful bondage, and made India the most terribly 
priest-ridden country on the face of the globe. The high 
caste Brahman is the most supercilious man to be met with 
among all the races of mankind to-day. The Sudra is a 
slave not only for time but for eternity. The benefits of 
the Hindoo religion are only for the first three castes. It 
is the most intense and unending slavery ever imagined. 

There are two hundred and seventy million Hindoos in 
India, the rest of the inhabitants being Mohammedans from 
Arabia and Parsees from Persia, with about one million 
two hundred thousand Christians. These last have in- 
creased twenty-three per cent, in four years. 

The old astronomical observatory of Rajah Mann at Ben- 
ares was very interesting. It is on the banks of the Gan- 
ges, and is at the top of a rather massive stone building, 
which has an open court in the center. It was erected in 
1680 by the famous Hindoo patron of science, Rajah Mann, 
and has some very remarkable astronomical instruments — 
a sun-dial, a zodiac, a quadrant, a meridian line, and other 
appliances — all of stone and of great size. It appears from 
this that astronomy was well advanced on the banks of the 
Ganges centuries ago, and it is said that the astronomers of 
India first demonstrated the rotation of the earth on its 
axis. 

We visited several temples — the great Dourga, or mon- 
key temple, where scores of monkeys are kept and wor- 
shiped as sacred; the Un-poorna, or cow temple, a dirty, ill- 
smelling place, where a large number of sacred cows are 

18 



274 



India, the Land of the Vedas. 



kept ; the Golden Temple, the roof of which is covered with 
gold-leaf; and several others — but none are so extensive as 
the temples in Southern India, and all are very inferior in 
size and beauty to the temples of Japan. 

The Queen's College at Benares is a very handsome build- 
ing, and has some fifteen hundred students in attendance. 
Sanskrit, Persian, Arabic, Hindoostanee, and English are 
all taught, and the whole institution has a very classical air. 
I have rarely seen a more venerable, scholarly looking man 
than the old Hindoo Pundit, who was the professor of San- 
skrit. England is doing great things for the education of 
this people, and there are fine colleges in all the large cit- 
ies, with smaller institutions and public schools throughout 
the country. 

Hearing that a company of missionaries were at the old 
Mint engaged in translating, we called there and found ten 
representatives of as many denominations engaged in revis- 
ing the New Testament in Hindoostanee. They have been 
carrying on these labors for several years, meeting for a 
month each year. Last year they met at the palace of the Ma- 
harajah of Vizinagran, who entertained them at his own ex- 
pense in regal style, furnishing food, servants, etc., and this 
year they are meeting in this building which was formerly 
a Government mint, but is now the property of the Maha- 
rajah of Benares, who has transformed it into a palace. 

We found two Americans among the revisers, Bev. J. 
Wi Wangh 3 D.D., presiding elder of the Kumaun District, 
M. E. Church, and Bev. J. F. Holcomb, of the Presbyte- 
rian Church — both of the United States. There were also 
four native preachers in the body, and all were working in- 
dustriously and harmoniously. 

One morning we drove out five miles to Sarnath, where 
Gautama, the founder of Buddhism, began to preach and 
teach, and where an old city once stood that has almost 



Benares, the Sacred City of the Hindoos. 



275 



passed from memory. We rode past the mud huts where 
men, women, and children swarmed ; across the open fields 
in which were the white-robed natives looking like ghosts 
in the early morning light; through fields of pulse such as 
Nebuchadnezzar gave to Daniel ; down a magnificent ave- 
nue of -tail trees; then across pastures to the old stupa, more 
than two thousand years old, which was erected to com- 
memorate the spot where Buddha began to teach. 

The old monument is a circular mass of brick and stone 
one hundred and ten feet high and two hundred and eighty 
feet in circumference. It is built up solidly, and at one 
time must have been a very beautiful monument, as there 
are remains of elaborate carvings and entablatures. A por- 
tion of a belt, with geometrical figures, about four feet wide, 
with a border of lotus leaves and flowers about the same 
width on either side, still remains, but much of the tower 
has fallen into decay. The place has a dreary, desolate 
look, and piles of debris are everywhere. It was difficult to 
realize that this was once the center of a populous city. A 
few poor peasants now occupy some wretched and ruined 
remains of an old temple, and the naked children begging 
backshish, with a feeble old man who tottered around and 
tried to act as our guide, were the only signs of life. 

Here, five hundred years before Christ, originated that re- 
ligion which to-day controls one-fourth of the human fam- 
ily. But though once dominant in the land of its birth, it 
has almost entirely disappeared from India, and only this 
and similar monuments remain to tell of its past power. 

So shall finally perish all the creeds of heathendom. 



VI. 

The Sepoy Rebellion— LuGkuow and Kawnpore. 



fHE city of Lucknow dates far back into the shadowy 
period of Hindoo history, and is one of the most inter- 
esting as well as one of the most splendid of the great historic 
cities of India. For many centuries the capital of the King- 
dom of Oude, when in the height of its magnificence, it 
doubtless merited the encomium of Bayard Taylor, who said 
of it that "All was lovely as the outer court of Paradise ! " 
It is still, with its domes and minarets and palaces, a reali- 
zation of one's dreams of Oriental splendor. There were five 
great kings of Oude, each one of whom built a splendid pal- 
ace, striving to surpass his predecessor. The first one is of 
the most gorgeous style of architecture, and colored to re- 
semble a vast structure of gold, while the next one, called 
the Great Imaambara, meets the requirement made of the 
architects, that they should produce a building unlike any 
other ever erected. The last King of Oude, Wajid Ali Shah, 
who is a prisoner in his palace near Calcutta, was deposed in 
1856 on account of his misrule and oppression. We rode 
through his splendid grounds in the heart of the city — a great 
rectangular garden with fountains, walks, flowers, and trees, 
surrounded on all sides by his palaces five and six stories 
high, aud where his five hundred wives used to play and 
amuse themselves. 

But that which invests Lucknow with the deepest inter- 
est is the memorable siege which probably has no parallel 
in history, and which occurred during the great Sepoy re- 
(276) 



The Sepoy Rebellion— Lucknow and Cawwpore. 277 



bellion, when seventeen hundred brave British and native 
soldiers defended five hundred and sixty women and chil- 
dren for one hundred and thirteen days, holding at bay a 
force of from fifty to one hundred thousand Sepoys. No 
one can conceive of the horrors and sufferings of that fear- 
ful siege, when the whole garrison, including the women 
and children, were reduced to starvation allowances of the 
coarsest food ; when clothing as well as provisions gave out, 
and many of them were clad in rags, and when terrible dis- 
eases added their horrors to the situation. During all that 
time a murderous fire was kept up upon them day and night, 
and the drenching rain of the monsoon mingled with the 
iron hail of death. Sir Henry Lawrence, the gallant com- 
mander, was killed early in the siege, and disease and the 
bullet fearfully decimated the little garrison. When at 
length the brave Havelock and his troops cut their way 
through the phalanx of Sepoys into the Residency, it was 
found that the combined force was too feeble to raise the 
siege. But final relief came at last with Sir Colin Camp- 
bell and his Highlanders, and one of the most affecting in- 
stances of human endurance on record came to an end No- 
vember 18, 1857. 

As I walked over the ruins of the old Residency where 
these thrilling events occurred, I could not understand how 
these faithful men kept back the tremendous odds of the 
enemy during all those weeks. While the original garri- 
son, as it left the fort, numbered about seventeen hundred 
men, of whom nearly half were native troops, at the relief 
there were left, including the sick and wounded, only three 
hundred and fifty Europeans and one hundred and thirty- 
three natives. At any hour during the siege the enemy 
might have carried the place by mere force of numbers and 
put the entire garrison to the sword. Surely God's prov- 
idence was over the little company! The grounds of the 



278 



India, the Land of the Vedas. 



Kesidency are considerably elevated, and include about ten 
acres. There were no walls around them, except in part, 
and only slight breastworks. The Bailey Guard Gate is 
left just as it was when Havelock and Campbell entered it. 

The women and children spent the five months of the 
siege in the cellars of the building, except when the former 
came up to assist in loading the guns or in caring for the 
wounded. Forty-five stone steps descend to these rooms. 
One lady is said to have died of fright, and one was killed in 
one of the upper rooms, where there is this inscription on the 
wall : " Susanna Palmer was killed in this room by a cannon- 
ball on the 1st of July, 1857, in her nineteenth year/' 

On the stone that marks the grave of Sir Henry Law- 
rence, in the cemetery of the Residency, is this inscription, 
dictated by himself : " Here lies Henry Lawrence, who tried 
to do his duty. May the Lord have mercy on his soul! 
Born 28th June, 1806. Died 4th July, 1857." 

We rode out to Alum Bagh, the summer palace of the 
king, five miles from the city, where is buried the noble 
Havelock, who died under an attack of dysentery after es- 
caping the dangers of war. Henry Havelock was one of 
the noblest spirits whoever led a command into battle, and 
his name has become almost a synonym for Christian fidel- 
ity and devotion. A tall, marble slab, bearing a long in- 
scription, marks his last resting-place. 

There rest thee, Christian warrior, rest from the twofold strife — 
The battle-field of India, the battle-field of life! 

There were many causes which led to this great mutiny, 
but the secret of the whole was that it was a sort of blind 
movement on the part alike of Mohammedans and Hindoos 
(who, although hating each other, became united through 
their hatred of the English) to throw off the British yoke. 
Monarch after monarch had been dethroned by the agents 
of the East India Company, and it became apparent that it 



The Sepoy Rebellion — Lucknow and Cawnpore. 279 



would not be long before the English power would be su- 
preme in the land ; and by a combined and preconcerted 
movement the native princes and their adherents determined 
to attempt to destroy that power before it reached that 
point. The mutiny broke out in the spring of 1857, and 
spread with fearful rapidity until the whole Sepoy army was 
in revolt. There were only about twenty thousand British 
troops in all India, the army being composed almost 
altogether of native troops called " Sepoys," who were 
officered by Englishmen. This Sepoy force mounted guard 
upon the forts, magazines, and treasuries of India ; and they 
were so little suspected that when the appointed hour came 
they held in their hands the key of the coined millions of 
the public money, its vast stores of munitions of war, and 
its strong forts. The outbreak occurred simultaneously at 
many places, and forts and towns were seized by the rebels, 
the English officers and residents slaughtered without mer- 
cy, and many of the strongest centers of British power in 
India passed into their possession. The great fort of Delhi, 
with its magazine, and vast amount of stores, arms, and 
ammunition, was defended for some time by a small force 
against great numbers of the rebels, and when at last it was 
found that they could hold out no longer, a match was ap- 
plied to the magazine and the whole was blown up, thou- 
sands of the assailants perishing with the defenders. At 
Delhi and other places a few Europeans escaped to the jun- 
gles, where they wandered for months, many perishing, 
and a small number surviving almost miraculously. At 
Allahabad and Agra, the foreign population escaped to the 
forts and were able to hold out during the entire mutiny. 

The chief horrors of the rebellion centered at Cawnpore, 
where occurred one of the darkest deeds of crime and blood 
ever perpetrated, under the orders of the inhuman monster, 
Nana Sahib. This great crime blackens the page of histo- 



280 



India, the Land of the Vedas. 



ry with a far deeper stain than Sicilian vespers or St. Bar- 
tholomew massacres, for it was prompted neither by mis- 
taken patriotism nor by the madness of superstition, but was 
a cold-blooded, treacherous butchery. Sir Hugh Wheeler, 
who was in command at Cawnpore, haying no fortress to 
which he could retire, hastily threw up earth-works on the 
open plain, which had been his parade ground, and gath- 
ered within this wide fortification his little handful of troops, 
about two hundred and fifty, with as many civilians and na- 
tive servants, and several hundred women and children, the 
families resident in the city and neighborhood. The defense 
was wholly inadequate, and a murderous fire was opened 
upon them by the Sepoys, which, with the terrible June sun 
pouring down upon them, made their situation intolerable. 
Many died and some went raving mad. The little garrison 
held out for several weeks, but at last Xana Sahib sent to 
them a flag of truce, proposing that if they would surrender 
and give up the treasure which they had been guarding, 
boats would be furnished them and they should be escorted 
safely to Allahabad, where they could join their friends in 
the fort. They accepted the terms of capitulation, and the 
next morning the whole little company marched eagerly to 
the river; but just as they were embarking on the boats a 
murderous fire of grape and canister was opened on them 
from a masked battery. Some of the boats were sunk and 
many were killed outright. The survivors were seized, the 
men instantly sabered, and the women and children, to the 
number of two hundred, hurried off to a small building in 
Cawnpore, where they were incarcerated for weeks, and ex- 
posed to the brutality of the Sepoy troops. One morning a 
rumor reached the rebel camp that a rescuing force was 
marching on it from Allahabad, and orders were at once 
given that they should all be put to death, and a detachment 
of Sepoys was ordered to shoot the innocent and defenseless 



The Sepoy Rebellion— Luchiow and Cawnpore. 281 



captives through the doors and windows of their prison- 
house. But a little spark of soldierly instinct and human- 
ity seems to have been left in these men, and they fired at 
the ceiling, so that the work of death proceeded slowly. 
Nana then summoned some Moslem butchers from the ba- 
zaars, some of his own Hindoo body-guard, who went in 
among the women and children with swords and long knives, 
and slashed and cut and slew them like a flock of defense- 
less sheep. The next morning the dead and dying, with a 
few survivors, were thrown into an open well which had 
been used for purposes of irrigation and was some fifty feet 
deep. And when Havelock with his rescuing force arrived, 
the room, ankle deep in blood, and with fragments of dress- 
es, large locks of hair, broken combs, three or four Bibles 
and prayer-books, and children's little shoes, told only too 
well the horrible story. The well beside the house held the 
mangled remains of those they had marched so far and 
fought so well to save. 

A beautiful park now lies around the scene of this fear- 
ful massacre, and in the midst of this park rise the walls of 
a sacred inclosure, in the center of which, over the fatal 
well, stands a marble angel wdth drooping wings, having in 
his hands the palm-leaves, emblematical of martyrdom and 
victory. The angel stands upon a pedestal of chenar stone, 
which bears this inscription : 

Sacred to the perpetual memory of a great company of 
Christian people, chiefly w^omen and children, cruelly 
massacred near this spot by the rebel nana sahib, and 
thrown, the dying with the dead, into the well beneath 
on the 15th day of July, MDCCCLVII. 

Over the bronze gate of the inclosure around this well is 
this inscription: "These are they which came out of great 
tribulation." Fifty yards from the memorial stands a white 
cross on a square pedestal of black marble, on which is in- 



282 



India, the Land of the Vedas. 



scribed : " In memoriam. On this spot stood the House of 
Massacre. July 15, 1857/' 

A handsome memorial church commemorates the place 
where General Wheeler made his defense, though through 
a mistake it stands just outside the fortifications. Around 
the chancel are memorial tablets with the names of all who 
perished in the siege and massacre, while over the altar is 
this inscription : " To the glory of God and in memory of 
more than a thousand Christian people, who met their deaths 
hard by between the 6th of June and the 15th of July, 
1857, these tablets are placed in this the memorial church 
of All-souls, Cawnpore." 

Lucknow is the head-quarters of the Methodist Episcopal 
Mission in North India. Here is located their Publishing 
House, with the Rev. J. H. Messmore in charge. This es- 
tablishment is quite an extensive one, having four litho- 
graphic presses, two job presses, and one large Cottrell press. 
It employs a number of men, and publishes India's Young 
Folks, The Stai* of India (native), and The Friend, besides 
issuing a large number of tracts, pamphlets, etc. The issues 
for 1886 were forty different volumes of books and tracts 
with 3,156,000 pages, and ten periodicals containing 2,857,- 
600 pages. We spent a delightful Sabbath at Lucknow, at- 
tending service in the morning at the English Church, of 
which the Rev. W. R. Clancy is pastor, and trying to preach 
in the same house in the evening. 

One feature in the mission-work at Lucknow is the large 
number of Sunday-schools which have been established in 
various parts of the city. There are twenty-six of these 
schools with 2,075 scholars. There are over 22,000 chil- 
dren in the Sunday-schools of the North India Conference. 
There is a native Christian community in this city of 360, 
and during the year 1886 there were fifty-one baptisms, 
of which twenty-seven were adults, twenty-four being Hin- 



The Sepoy Rebellion — Lucknow aud Cawnpore. 283 



doos, and three Mohammedans. The Centennial High 
School, of which the Rev. B. H. Badley is principal, is the 
largest school the Methodist Episcopal Church has in its 
foreign mission-fields, it having enrolled last year five hun- 
dred and forty pupils, of whom eighty were Christians, 
eighty Mohammedans, and the rest Hindoos. 

We took tea at the Woman's Home, a splendid building 
at Lall Bagh, which was the first property ever bought by 
the Woman's Foreign Missionary Society of that Church, 
it having been purchased in 1871. Miss Thoburn and Miss 
Tinsley (now Mrs. Waugh) were first in charge here. Miss 
Devine now has charge of a large boarding-school for girls. 
Miss T. J. Kyle has charge of the zenana work, being as- 
sisted by four young Eurasians and eight native women. 
They visit regularly over three hundred zenanas, making 
the round in six weeks. There are thirty female missiona- 
ries at work in the bounds of the North India Conference, 
besides a large number of native women and Eurasians, and 
their work is developing wonderfully. I was greatly im- 
pressed with the earnestness and devotion of these mission- 
aries, and left them with the conviction that they were do- 
ing a valuable work. In March last five hundred and sixty 
persons in one neighborhood in the North of Gonda District 
in this Conference received baptism within a fortnight. 

In company with Mr. Clancy, we visited a number of 
opium-dens in Lucknow, and found to our surprise that 
they are as numerous and have as many frequenters as sim- 
ilar establishments at Shanghai and other Chinese cities. 
I had thought that this terrible vice was peculiar to the 
Chinese, but it is to-day the curse of India as it is of the 
Middle Kingdom. There are six large licensed shops in 
Lucknow, the smallest of which pays to the Government 
one hundred and eight rupees (about $50) per month, and 
consumes in that length of time forty-four pounds of the 

: 

_ 



- 

284 India, the Land of the Vedas. 

drug; while the largest pays a monthly license of as much 
as one hundred and twenty-five rupees. There were a 
large number of women with the men in these shops, which 
was worse than in China, as we saw no women in the dens 
there. What a burning outrage that the British Govern- 
ment sanctions and encourages this fearful vice, which is 
fatal to mind, soul, and body ! It is said that many acquire 
the habit in childhood, the mothers giving it to their chil- 
dren to quiet them. 

While riding through this city, we saw a fakir travel- 
ing to some shrine by measuring his length upon the 
ground. These fakirs, who are horrible-looking men with 
disheveled hair and naked bodies and painted breasts and 
foreheads, are the saints of the Mohammedan and Hindoo 
systems. While some of them wander from place to place, 
living on the alms of their worshipers, others establish 



themselves under some great ban van -tree or at some road- 
side shrine, and there receive the homage and offerings of 
the ignorant and superstitious people. Sometimes, like the 
one whom we saw, they will measure with their lengths the 



distance between two shrines or temples. This one was a 
miserable-looking object, covered with dust and mud, and 
accompanied by a crowd who were witnessing his feat. He 
would lay himself down flat on the road, his face in the 
dust, and, stretching himself to his full length, make a 
mark with his fingers. Then he would get up and, " toe- 
ing" that mark, He down again; and by this painful and 
tedious process he proposed to make the entire journey, 
resting only at night. 

The modern Lucknow is an enterprising city of 100,000 
inhabitants, with a large paper-factory, two ice-factories, and 
two large flour-mills. It is the stronghold of Mohammed- 
anism in India, and is said to have no less than a thou- 
sand mosques. 



VII. 

Agra and the Taj lata! 



KBAK, the greatest of the Mogul Emperors and the 
real founder of the Mogul Empire in India, was a 
contemporary of Shakespeare and Queen Elizabeth, and was 
a man of great intellectual force and vigor. At the time 
when he was at the summit of his power his fame had 
spread over all the East, and attracted many to his court 
from Persia and other countries. Among those thus at- 
tracted was Khwaja Accas, a native of Western Tartary. 
He disposed of all his little patrimony to go to the famed 
court of the Great Mogul to seek his fortune, taking with 
him his wife and two sons. While crossing the Great Des- 
ert their stock of money gave out, and they were three 
days without food and at the point of starvation. While 
in this fearful condition, the wife gave birth to a daughter, 
whom the miserable parents agreed to abandon to its fate. 
But just as they were out of sight of the little mound of 
leaves which covered the infant, the maternal instinct be- 
came too strong to be resisted, and the poor mother, in an 
agony of grief, threw herself upon the ground, exclaiming, 
" My child ! my child ! " Accas could not resist the appeal, 
and returning for the child brought it to its mother's arms. 

Soon afterward a caravan was seen coming toward them, 
which proved to belong to a wealthy merchant, who re- 
lieved their necessities, assisted them to Lahore, where Ak- 
bar then had his court, and even procured for Accas a po- 
sition under the Mogul. 

(285) 




286 



India, the Land of the Vedas. 



That little group of five filled a more important place 
in the history of India than any family which ever emi- 
grated thither. The father became Prime Minister to Ak- 
bar, his name having been changed to Etmad-od-Doulah, 
and when he died, a wealthy and distinguished man, his 
daughter erected over him one of the most beautiful white 
marble tombs in India. That same daughter, the once de- 
serted babe, grew to be one of the most beautiful and dis- 
tinguished women in India; married Jehangir, one of the 
Mogul Emperors, and has been immortalized in Moore's 
" Lalla Rookh" as Noor Jehan, the " Light of the World." 
Her brother, Asuf Jan, became the father of the equally 
celebrated Mumtaj-i-Mahal, to whose memory her husband, 
Shah Jehan, built the matchless Taj Mahal. 

This " crown of edifices/' as its name signifies, is the most 
beautiful building in the world, a snow-white wonder, a 
dream in marble. Bishop Heber described it as designed 
by Titans and finished by jewelers, and it is unquestionably 
the most exquisite piece of workmanship which men have 
seen since Solomon erected his temple. It was designed for 
a tomb, but presents more the appearance of a lovely pal- 
ace, and seems almost like "a building not made with 
hands." 

On her death-bed, Mumtaj sent for the Emperor and 
made him promise not to marry again, and to build for her 
a tomb more beautiful than any the world had ever seen. He 
faithfully kept both vows, and had twenty thousand men 
employed for seventeen years in, erecting this marvelous 
building, which cost fifteen million dollars when money was 
worth five times its present value. Undoubtedly Byzan- 
tine and Florentine artists were in the employment of Shah 
Jehan, and the design of the Taj is attributed to a Vene- 
tian named Geronimo Venomeo. It was finished in 1648, 
and is Saracenic in architecture. The whole building 



Agra and the Taj Mahal. 



287 



without and within — dome, walls, ceiling, crypt, and towers 
— is of pure white marble, and adorned with every variety of 
precious stones. Every kingdom in the East was laid under 
tribute to furnish materials. The white marble was brought 
from Jeypore, the yellow from the banks of the Nerbudda, 
the black from Charkoh, jasper from the Punjab, crystal 
from China, cornelian from Bagdad, turquoise from Thib- 
et, amethyst from Persia, diamonds from Poona, sapphires 
from Lanka, agate from Yemen, lapis lazuli from Ceylon, 
and coral from Arabia. 

The garden in which the Taj is situated, on the banks of 
the sacred Jumna, is one of the most lovely in all the East, 
and is one thousand eight hundred and sixty feet long by 
more than one thousand feet wide. It is surrounded by a 
massive red sandstone wall fifteen feet high and more than 
a mile in circumference. At the entrance is a lofty red 
sandstone gate-way, itself a magnificent work of art and a 
w r orthy prelude to the matchless building beyond. This 
gate-w r ay is surmounted by a kiosk at each corner, and be- 
tween these are two rows of twenty-four white marble cupo- 
las. Passing through this gate-way, before you stretches an 
avenue one thousand feet long and thirty-five feet wide, in 
the center of which is a miniature lake four hundred feet 
long and fifteen feet wide, in which are more than one hun- 
dred fountains. At the end of this vista rises the Taj, so 
striking in its beauty that you almost hold your breath as 
you gaze upon it. It rests upon two platforms, the lower 
one of red sandstone, one thousand feet wide, three hun- 
dred and sixty feet deep, and five feet high. At each corner 
of this terrace, or platform, there is an octagonal tower of 
red sandstone, surmounted by a white marble kiosk. In the 
center of this platform rises another terrace of white marble, 
four hundred feet square, with a graceful, slender minaret 
of the same material, one hundred and thirty-seven feet 



288 



India, the Land of the Vedas. 



high, at each corner. A beautiful mosque of red sandstone 
is on each side of the sandstone platform, equidistant from 
the marble terrace, and standing like sentinels to the won- 
derful shrine. The Taj is in the center of the marble ter- 
race, facing the entrance, faultless in its symmetry and 
beauty, and crowned w^ith a magnificent dome, seventy feet 
in diameter and eighty feet high, which seems to spring like 
a bubble out of the building itself and swells upward in 
stately beauty and splendor. The building is one hundred 
and eighty-six feet square, with the corners cut off so as to 
give it an octagonal appearance. It is two hundred and 
seventy-five feet from the marble platform to the golden 
crescent at the top of the spire. Sixteen slender turrets are 
around the walls, crowned with miniature domes and sur- 
rounding the great central dome. Minarets, towers, kiosks, 
and domes all have gilded spires, and any thing so fairy- 
like, so spotless, so graceful, so totally unlike any other 
creation of man, is to be found nowhere else upon the earth. 

In order to have the fall effect of this wonderful building, 
Mr. Palmore and I rose at four o'clock and drove out to it 
that we might see it first by moonlight. As the pure white 
building in its peerless beauty rose before us in the soft 
light of the full moon, it stole over our hearts like a strain 
of delicious music, or like the melody of sublime poetry. 
We climbed one of the lofty marble minarets and sat in the 
open cupola at the top for more than an hour, inexpressibly 
thrilled by the lovely vision before us. The view is photo- 
graphed so indelibly upon my memory that I am sure no 
time can dim it. The impression produced by the Taj is 
perfectly bewitching, and you can gaze upon it for hours 
and continually find fresh beauties. These Hindoos, who 
worship every thing, would fall down in adoration before this 
marvelous structure if a Mohammedan had not built it. 
It is worth a pilgrimage to see, and is simply matchless and 



Agra and the Taj Mahal. 



289 



faultless. " There is but one Allah, and Mohammed is his 
prophet/' say these Mussulmans. So they might say, 
"There is but one Taj, and Shah Jehan was its builder."' 
There never was and never can be another building like it. 

While we watched and admired and spoke in low, soft 
tones, lest the beautiful vision, which seemed to float in the 
air like an autumn cloud, might pass away, from our lofty 
perch we saw the moon fade out and the sun rise in all his 
glory, transfiguring the wonderful building in sudden light. 
A purple glow seemed to rest upon it, and nothing this side 
of heaven can ever be half so beautiful. We came down 
from the tower, went through the beautiful rotunda whose 
walls are inlaid with precious stones, and into which the 
light streams through screens of open marble trellis-work ; 
stood over the cenotaph, upon w T hich the most beautiful 
flowers have been made with lapis lazuli, blood-stone, agate, 
coral, cornelian, and other jewels, and which is inclosed by 
a magnificent white marble screen six feet high, carved to 
represent delicate lace-work; tested the marvelous echo 
w 7 hich sends back the human voice in strains of such melody 
that it seems as if angel bands had caught up the song and 
were prolonging it; descended into the vaults where are the 
real tombs, and where Shah Jehan sleeps beside his beloved 
Muntaj; climbed to the roof and up upon the great dome; 
and then descending, went down the paved avenue to a 
marble terrace which is midway between the Taj and the 
entrance, and sat there for two hours gazing upon the won- 
derful structure of which one never tires. And as I looked 
I found my eyes filling with unwonted tears, for nothing 
on earth is so suggestive of the Golden City, whose walls are 
pearls and whose gates are precious stones. 

As we slowly and regretfully left the Taj and caught a 
last view of its marble domes and gilded spires, we thought 
how changed w r ere all things in the once proud city of Shah 
19 



290 



India, the Land of the Vedas. 



Jehan since the day when he wrote on the sarcophagus of 
his beloved Begum, "Deliver us from the tribe of unbe- 
lievers! " And as we had roused the wonderful echoes of 
the great rotunda with " Jesus, lover of my soul," and had 
offered up a prayer for the regeneration of India, beside the 
marble cenotaphs under the lofty dome, so we believe that 
one day every Moslem mosque and Hindoo temple will re- 
echo with Christian prayer and praise. 

Agra is a well-built city, the best we had hitherto seen 
in India, and the people seemed industrious and prosper- 
ous. Brick and stone here take the place of mud as build- 
ing materials, and many of the houses are even imposing 
in appearance. The people are much lighter in color than 
the Bengalese or the inhabitants of Southern India, and are 
evidently more intelligent. We happened there at the sea- 
son when marriages are usually celebrated, and the first 
evening we were there we met no less than twenty marriage 
processions, In every ease the bride and groom were un- 
der twelve years of age, and one little bride whom we saw 
tricked out in gorgeous paraphernalia was only six years 
old! These child marriages constitute one of the greatest 
evils now existing in India, and have filled the zenanas of 
that country with at least one hundred million poor, hope- 
less prisoners, who are doomed to a life of servitude and 
oppression. For these child marriages are not consum- 
mated for several years, and if, in the meantime, the hus- 
band dies the little widow goes into the zenana of her 
mother-in-law, becomes the slave of the household, and i$ 
never allowed to marry. No wonder that in the olden days 
they were willing to burn themselves on the funeral piles 
of their husbands to escape such a fate. 

These marriage festivities are celebrated with great 
splendor, and sometimes a man will bankrupt himself to 
give his daughter a proper wedding-feast. We saw one 



Agra and the Taj Mahal. 



291 



wedding-feast in progress which would cost the father at 
least one hundred and fifty rupees. His wages were eight 
rupees per month, and he had borrowed the money from 
his banker, promising to pay back a small amount with a 
high rate of interest each month. He never expected to 
get out of debt during his life, and his son would probably 
inherit it, and possibly it would never be paid, but he was 
forced to comply with an inexorable custom in order to 
maintain his caste and his respectability. 

We passed the house of a wealthy merchant who was cel- 
ebrating the marriage of his son. A great crowd had 
gathered in front of the house and blocked the street, wait- 
ing for the silver which is thrown by handfuls into the 
crowd when the wealth of the happy father justifies such 
an expenditure. If he cannot afford this, then gifts of fruit, 
cocoa-nuts, etc., are distributed amongst the crowd. 

Much tawdry finery is displayed in the processions. 
Music, banners, and transparencies come first ; then follow 
the friends, walking or riding, bearing in their midst the 
little groom on a gaily caparisoned horse ; and lastly comes 
a richly decorated palanquin with closely drawn curtains, 
in which is borne the poor little bride. Sometimes a num- 
ber of Nautch girls, with tinkling anklets and bracelets and 
dressed in gaudy colors, form part of the procession. We 
met one of this description, and, seeing that we w ere stran- 
gers, they stopped, formed a circle, and gave us a regular 
Nautch dance in the middle of the street. We have not 
witnessed, since leaving home, so gay a scene as the streets 
of Agra presented that night. But our hearts were sad as 
we thought of the poor little girls doomed to a life of slav- 
ery and despair, for they are at once separated from their 
homes and families and taken to the houses of their hus- 
bands. A lady missionary told me that one day she found 
one of her little six-year-old pupils crying as if her heart 



292 



India, the Land of the Vedas. 



would break, and, inquiring the cause, was told that her 
parents were going to marry her next week into a family 
whom she did not know ; and sure enough the next week the 
little one was torn from family and friends and never al- 
lowed again to see her home or those whom she loved. 

The great fort of Akbar and the marble palace of Shah 
Jehan at Agra are unsurpassed in all India. The spirit of 
these Orientals found expression in cool marble halls and 
splashing fountains; in great screens of marble lace-work 
and rich mosaics of jeweled flowers ; in swelling domes and 
lofty turrets; in superb ornamentation and elegant carv- 
ings that have never been surpassed. As we wandered 
through the now silent halls where suitors had laid gold 
and perfume at the feet of sovereigns ; as we thought of the 
pomp and magnificence which had surrounded the court of 
the old Moguls ; as we stood in the marble octagonal bed- 
room overhanging the Jumna where Shah Jehan had his 
couch brought when he was dying, so that his last earthly 
look might rest upon the Taj where his beloved Mumtaj 
lay sleeping; as we saw in imagination the plain below 
filled with the great throng that came every morning to 
greet their sovereign, with their spears and silver maces, 
the procession of elephants with their canopies of state, the 
gorgeous palanquins of the princes, and the close litters of 
the noble ladies; we realized more than ever before how 
little and vain a thing is all human pomp and power, and 
how surely they are destined to pass away. 

The Pearl Mosque, built by Shah Jehan within the fort, 
is a perfect gem of the purest white marble, with exquisite, 
carvings and so absolutely faultless in harmony and design 
that it seems to breathe the very spirit of devotion and 
prayer. You enter a great quadrangle some two hundred 
feet square, paved with marble and with a great marble 
font in the center, on three sides of which is a graceful open 



Agra and the Taj Mahal. 



293 



colonnade. On the east, facing the entrance and occupy- 
ing the whole side of the quadrangle, with massive marble 
columns and graceful springing arches, is the most beauti- 
ful mosque in all the world, the interior of purest white 
marble without one tint of coloring, but with the most 
graceful carvings of fruits and flowers. Involuntarily you 
think as you enter it, " The pure in heart shall see God," 
and you feel that it is a desecration for any but the true 
and living God to be worshiped in such a temple. 

At Secundra, five miles from Agra, is the tomb of Ak> 
bar, the Magnificent, the greatest of the Moguls and the 
third from Tamerlane. The tomb is approached through 
a magnificent gate-way of red sandstone with inlaid marble 
and inwrought passages from the Koran. It is flanked on 
either side by a beautiful round tower of white marble, the 
upper part of both having been shot off by the Jots. Three 
hundred yards off rises the tomb, a great irregular building 
or rather mass of buildings, rising in successive towers and 
minarets for five stories to the flat roof. Entering the 
door-way, you descend a long, dark passage over slippery 
flag-stones to ail immense round chamber with a vaulted 
dome rising one hundred feet overhead, the only light to 
the rotunda being admitted through the passage. In the 
center is the marble sarcophagus, without ornament or in- 
scription, containing the dust of the dead monarch. As- 
cending by five long flights of stairs to the summit, you 
enter an open, marble-paved court on the roof, one hundred 
feet square and surrounded by a light and elegant marble 
corridor ten feet wide and twenty feet high, with thirty-six 
marble pillars supporting the roof by Romanesque arches, 
the summit of the roof being crowned at the four angles 
with graceful marble cupolas some twenty feet high. In 
the center of this court is a marble platform forty feet 
square and eighteen inches high, in the middle of which is 



294 



India, the Land of the Vedas. 



the white marble cenotaph of Akbar, covered with the 
most beautiful marble carving I have ever seen. Amidst 
the exquisite tracery of vines and flowers are the ninety- 
nine Mohammedan names of the Deity in Arabic. At the 
head of the cenotaph, and a few feet from it, is an elaborate 
marble urn three feet high, which was formerly surmounted 
by a miniature golden dome, crowned at the top by the cel- 
ebrated Koh-i-noor diamond. This " Mountain of Light " 
has had a remarkable history. Originally found in the 
mines of Golconda, in Southern India, it long adorned the 
hideous idol of Orissa. Taken from thence by Akbar and 
worn in his crown, it flamed like a sentinel at the head of 
his tomb. The Persian conqueror, Isadah Shah, robbed 
the tomb and took the precious jewel to Delhi. There 
Eunjet Singh, the great Mahratta chieftain, found it and 
carried it to his palace at Lahore when he became the con- 
queror of India, and he in turn was compelled to yield it 
up to British power, and it now glitters in the crown of 
Queen Victoria, sovereign of Great Britain and Empress 
of India. 

We left Agra in a blaze of light. The city was brill- 
iantly illuminated in honor of Queen Victoria's semi-cen- 
tennial; bands were playing, soldiers were marching, fire- 
works were making the night beautiful, and the whole pop- 
ulace seemed to be in a whirlwind of joy. Thus do men 
persuade themselves that they love their chains. 



YIII. 

Delhi and the Punjab, 



ELHI, for centuries the proudest capital of the Mogul 
Empire, has played a most important part in the his- 
tory of India, and is a city full of interest to the traveler. 
The present city was built by Shah Jehan, but within a 
circle of twenty miles there are the ruins of no less than six 
Delhis, each dynasty, instead of occupying the same site, 
having founded a new city and leaving the capital of his 
predecessor to crumble into dust. So that the vast plain is 
strewn with the ruins and debris of splendid cities which 
connect ages lying far back of the Christian era with to- 
day. It has been truly said that " Delhi has been the stage 
of greatness — men the actors, ambition the prompter, and 
centuries the audience." 

Delhi, although declining, is still one of the most splendid 
cities of Northern India, and its principal streets are full of 
busy life, representing all the strange varieties of human be- 
ings that makeup an Indian capital. The principal street, 
the Chandni Chowk, is one hundred and twenty feet wide, 
with a broad terrace or promenade, shaded by trees in the 
center, and is daily the scene of more strictly Asiatic dis- 
play than any other street in India. It is lined on either 
side with shops and arcades, and with its loaded trains of 
solemn camels, gaily caparisoned elephants, richly decorated 
Arabian horses, and crowds of natives in all the various 
costumes of the interior of Asia, it transports one back to the 
barbaric splendor of the old days of the Mogul dynasty. 

(295) 




296 



India, the Land of the Vedas. 



The palace of Shah Jehan here at Delhi is the most splen- 
did in India, and perhaps in the world. In this palace is the 
famous Diwan-i-kkas, or hall of private audience, which con- 
tained the Peacock Throne, which cost thirty millions ster- 
ling (one hundred and fifty million dollars), and which 
the world has never seen any thing like save the "Ivory 
Th rone " of Solomon. By the way, Solomon imported from 
this fabulously rich country his " ivory and apes and pea- 
cocks." 

The Diwan-i-khas rests on an elevated marble terrace, 
and is itself an open marble pavilion, resting on massive 
pillars of marble and moresque arches, with a graceful cu- 
pola at each angle. The richest designs are worked into 
the marble, the fruits and flowers being represented by 
gems, such as amethysts, cornelian, lapis lazuli, garnet, topaz, 
etc. It is seventy by ninety feet, and is the most magnifi- 
cent audiencec-hamber that monarch could desire. One 
end opens on a beautiful flower-garden and the other on the 
Jumna, while it is flanked on either side by open marble- 
paved courts. In the center of this magnificent hall stood 
the famous Peacock Throne — a throne of solid gold six feet 
long and four feet broad, inlaid with precious stones, and 
surmounted by a gold canopy, supported by twelve pillars 
of the same material. Around the canopy hung a fringe 
of pearls, while the back of the throne was a representa- 
tion of the expanded tail of a peacock, the natural colors of 
which were represented by sapphires, rubies, emeralds, 
diamonds, and other brilliant gems. The richest gems of 
Golconda were here disposed by the most skillful hands of 
Europe. Inside the entrance of the khas, on a slab of al- 
abaster, is the Persian couplet quoted by Moore in " Lalla 
Rookh:" 

If there be an Elysium on earth, 
It is this, it is this. 



Delhi and the Punjab. 



297 



When Nadir Shah, the Persian, invaded Hindostan, he 
carried off this famous Peacock Throne, with an almost in- 
credible amount of other treasures. It is said that he was 
so enriched with the spoils of Delhi that he gave three 
months' pay to every soldier in his army, and remitted a 
year's taxation throughout the whole Persian Empire. 

The crown worn by the Great Mogul was worthy of this 
throne and hall. It had twelve points, each surmounted by 
a diamond of the purest water, while the central point ter- 
minated in a single pearl of extraordinary size, the whole 
being worth over ten million dollars. Put this on his head, 
and the Koh-i-noor diamond on his brow, and seat him on his 
Peacock Throne in his magnificent khas, surrounded by 
Mohammedan princes, and by turbaned and jeweled rajahs, 
and you have the wildest dream of Oriental splendor real- 
ized. On the birthday of the great Mogul, he was weighed 
in golden scales twelve times against gold, silver, perfumes, 
and other valuables, the whole of which was then divided 
among the spectators. 

But all this magnificence is now a thing of the past, and 
as w r e wandered through these splendid halls and richly 
ornamented marble rooms, we were ready to re-echo the ex- 
clamation of Bishop Heber, who so fully appreciated the 
taste and skill exhibited in the gorgeous buildings of India : 
" These Patans built like giants, and finished their work 
like jewelers." Some idea of the splendor of this palace 
may be gathered from the royal baths, which were rooms 
of the purest white marble, with inlaid borders of precious 
stones, marble floors and tanks, and a perfumed fountain in 
the center of each room. 

The Motee Musjid, or Pearl Mosque, is an exquisite little 
gem, a miniature of the Pearl Mosque at Agra, and which 
was for the exclusive use of the Emperor and the inmates 
of his seraglio. The entrance is by a massive bronze door 



298 India, the Land of the Ytdas. 



through a marble archway into an open marble-paved quad- 
rangle forty feet square, with a fountain in the center, and 
surrounded by a marble wall twenty feet high, surmounted 
by a crinolated top with twelve turrets and a miniature 
kiosk at each corner, all terminating in gilt pinnacles. 
The mosque is open on the side next to the court, and the 
ascent to it is by three pairs of marble steps. It is twenty- 
five by forty feet, with magnificent marble columns, cap- 
itals, and architraves, all beautifully carved in vines and 
flowers. It is surmounted by a wonderfully symmetrical 
central dome and two smaller ones on each side, the three 
looking like great snowy bubbles. The only furniture in 
the mosque is a small marble dais, with three steps leading 
up to it. It is the most exquisite and elaborate mosque in 
the world, though not so impressive as the Pearl Mosque at 
Agra. 

The Jumna JIusjid, the grandest mosque in the East, 
which owes its construction to Shah Jehan, that great 
builder of cities, tombs, palaces, and mosques, stands on an 
elevated terrace which is reached by a long flight of broad 
marble steps. Its paved court, four hundred and fifty feet 
square, is surrounded on three sides by a colonnade of red 
sandstone with a marble pavilion at each corner. Three 
white marble domes of noble proportions, a hundred and 
fifty feet in height, surrounded by minarets and crowned 
with gilt spires, surmount the edifice, while a multitude of 
spires, minarets, and turrets are on the gate-ways and walls. 
The mosque is built principally of red sandstone, but is freely 
inlaid with white marble, and is an imposing and striking 
building, overlooking from its lofty platform the whole city. 

Eleven miles from Delhi, standing like a sentinel among 
the ruins of tombs, gate-ways, palaces, mosques, and mason- 
ry, is one of the most remarkable monuments of India. It 
is called the Kootub Minar, and is a campanile more impos- 



Delhi and the Punjab. 



299 



ing than Giotto's famous tower. It has been well said that 
what the Taj is among the tombs this is among the towers 
of the earth, for there is nothing like it in its beautiful pro- 
portions, chaste embellishments, and exquisite finish. It is 
a fluted column of red stone two hundred and forty feet in 
height, more than one hundred feet in circumference at the 
base, and gradually diminishing to forty feet at the summit. 
It is divided into five stories by projecting balconies, and 
adorned with colossal inscriptions in bold relief. It mm 
erected about the year 1210 A.D., by Kootub-ud-din, Sul- 
tan of Delhi, who was the first of the dynasty which is known 
in history as that of the Slave Kings, and though it has 
stood for so many centuries not the least crack in the ma- 
sonry can be discovered, either inside or outside. It is sup- 
posed to have been designed as one of the two minars of a 
mosque which in size and splendor was to be peerless on the 
earth as a place of worship, and we can readily see from 
this single shaft that, had the design been completed, it 
would have been all its princely projector intended in that 
respect. 

Near the Kootub stands a remarkable iron column w 7 hich 
has proved an enigma to all archaeologists. It is sixteen 
inches in diameter, and about sixty feet in length, the great- 
er part of it being below ground. It is supposed to be at 
least fifteen hundred years old, and to have been erected 
by Rajah Dhava. An inscription in Sanskrit gives this 
legend : The Rajah dreamed one night that his enemies 
from a neighboring Raj were coming to destroy his pow er, 
and take his dominions. At the instigation of his family, 
he consulted a Brahman, who told him that the calamity 
might be averted if he w r ould make a pillar of different met- 
als — iron, brass, gold, silver, tin, etc., — and put this pillar 
on the head of the dragon. This column was the result, 
and it is still smooth and clean, showing no signs of decay. 



300 



India, the Land of the Vedas. 



The metals of which it is composed were so fused and amal- 
gamated that it defies all oxidation, and the characters en- 
graved upon it are as clear and distinct as when first cut 
by the chisel of the engraver. 

All around the Kootub and this iron pillar is strewn a 
wilderness of ruins, among which live the peasants of the 
laud. Splendid broken arches that once belonged to the 
palaces of kings are now the door-ways to their mud huts, 
and magnificent marble columns which once adorned the 
mosques of Indian princes now support the thatched roofs 
that shelter naked Hindoos; and through the jungles, where 
were once the streets of populous cities, wild beasts now 
roam, and jackals and hyenas howl. 

From Delhi we went to ITmritsar, the Sacred City of the 
Sikhs, a clean, well-built, walled city of nearly two hundred 
thousand inhabitants, composed principally of Sikhs, Hin- 
doos, Mohammedans, and Cashmiris. These people of the 
Punjab — the land of the five rivers — are tall and light, with 
picturesque costumes, and a debonair air about them which 
is very attractive. The women wear bifurcated garments, 
and the most enormous ear-rings and nose-rings that I have 
ever seen. Carpet and shawl manufacturing is extensively 
carried on here. Down a back alley, reeking with foul 
stenches, in a kind of shed, we found some workmen weav- 
ing beautiful Cashmere plush carpets that were worth ten 
dollars per yard. 

The Sikhs were originally a mixed community of Eajputs, 
Jats, and other races, who were formed into a religious 
brotherhood about the end of the fifteenth century by a fa- 
mous prophet named ]S~anuk Guru. Their religious faith 
is a strange combination of Mohammedanism and Hindoo- 
ism, and they have been greatly persecuted by both sects. 
In many respects they are superior to all the other races of 
India. Their famous Golden Temple, the most sacred place 



Delhi and the Punjab. 



301 



to them in the world, is situated at Umritsar in the midst 
of a vast tank. It is a small building, the exterior being 
covered with a thin layer of gold, causing it to present a 
very striking appearance. Five hundred priests are at- 
tached to this temple, and are constantly engaged in the va- 
rious offices of their peculiar worship. 

At Lahore, the old gate-way to India, we reached the 
northen limit of our travels in the Land of the Vedas. We 
had traveled through India from north to south, nearly two 
thousand miles, and were now on the confines of Afghanis- 
tan, only three days' travel from the Vale of Cashmere. 

Who has not heard of the Vale of Cashmere, 
With its roses the brightest that earth ever gave; 

Its temples, and grottoes, and fountains as clear 
As the love-lighted eyes that hang over their wave? 

From the summit of the fort at Lahore we could see the 
mountains of Cashmere glistening like shimmering thrones 
of everlasting snow, and as w r e looked, like Bunyan, we 
" wished w T e were there." It was here at Lahore that Lal- 
la Rookh was tendered so magnificent a reception on her 
way to Cashmere. She was the daughter of Aurengzebe, 
one of the Moguls, and was pledged in marriage to Aliris, 
the young king of Bucharia, in whose favor his father ab- 
dicated, the latter wishing to make a pilgrimage to Mecca. 
A magnificent caravan accompanied the bride from Delhi 
through Lahore to the Vale of Cashmere, the Eajahs and 
Omras who formed this retinue scattering munificent gifts 
to the people. By some curious machinery rich confection- 
ery and fruit were also showered upon the multitude. The 
whole city turned out to see the gorgeous procession, and 
she was followed to the city gate by the chief of the nobility, 
and long lines of beautiful boys and girls who waved over 
their heads plates of gold and silver flowers. 

Lahore is one of the most ancient and famous cities of 



S02 India, the Land of the Vedas. 

India, and was one of the splendid capitals of the Mogul 
dynasty. Xo historian has attempted to give the date of its 
origin, and no less than four Lahores have risen successive- 
ly upon the old foundations. It was flourishing and popu- 
bus at the time of Alexander's invasion, 326 B.C., and 
Hindoo tradition makes its origin divine, and declares that 
Loh, the elder son of Rama, was its founder. It was to 
me one of the most interesting cities of India — if indeed it 
can he called an Indian city — for its streets and bazaars 
are thronged with rude, long-haired, Afghan horse-traders 
and fruit-venders, Cashmerean shawl-merchants, tall Sikhs, 
white Circassians, and natives of the wild, interlying terri- 
tory between India and the boundaries of Europe. Many a 
new and strange type of humanity stares you in the face as 
you saunter along the streets as much an object of curios- 
ity to them as they are to you. 

The fort at Lahore, as at Agra, Delhi, and other Indian 
cities, is not according to our idea of a fort, but is a group 
of historic buildings, palaces, etc. There are armories, 
great courts, trees, marble pavilions, and mosques where 
Emperors prayed. Here is the great Akbar's palace, ex- 
tending a distance of five hundred feet, and which was en- 
larged by Shah Jehan and Aurengzebe. Then there is a 
Palace of Mirrors, where room after room is covered with 
a succession of miniature mirrors, and you are reflected from 
a thousand surfaces, while the great hall, twenty by seventy 
feet, also has the roof and walls entirely of mirrors, with 
wainscoting of marble. On one side is a marble pavilion 
inlaid with gems from the richest mines of the Eastern 
world. 

One of the most interesting places in the fort was the 
armory, which contained a collection of all the varied 
weapons which had formerly been used in Indian warfare. 
Many of them were of antique fashion and of superb work- 



Delhi and the Punjab. 



303 



manship, curious in design, and intended to do faithful 
work. Maces with rusty iron spikes; great kettle-drums 
by which Mogul and Sikh marched to victory ; whole gar- 
ments of flexible steel chains ; swords with double edges, 
which only a strong arm could lift ; great axes that were 
never meant to fell trees, but only men; curious pistols of 
the most primitive description ; small cannon for mounting 
on the backs of camels ; instruments of torture for pulling 
out fingers; terrible daggers which seemed but one, yet had 
the secret power, when the thrust is made, of unfolding 
themselves into two, and thus do fearful work. All these 
and many other weapons we looked at until they made our 
flesh creep, and we were glad to get back among living 
men. 

We visited the tombs of Baber, the great founder of the 
Mogul dynasty; of Jehangir, whose wife, Noor Mahal, 
" The Light of the Harem/' has been immortalized by 
Moore; and of Runjeet Singh, the Lion of Lahore, 
where, under a dome of convex mirrors supported by eight 
double marble columns with a cluster of eight additional 
marble columns at each angle, is a marble canopy; and 
under this canopy is a large covered urn surrounded by 
eleven smaller ones, which contain the ashes of the great 
Sikh chieftain and his four wives and seven concubines, 
who were burned with him. 

The native town of Lahore presents a strange admixture 
of architecture. Some of the houses are two and. three 
stories high, fantastically carved and painted, with orna- 
mental balconies and projecting windows framed in lattice- 
work. Sometimes mud hovels adjoined these, and in the 
narrow 7 , unpaved streets w r ere open bazaars, where the vend- 
ers sat on the ground with their wares around them. 
There is a fine museum, some interesting mosques, some cu- 
rious ruius of old palaces and temples, and an old wall 



304 



India, the Land of the Vedas. 



against which armies stormed in the ages long since past, 
when the hordes came sweeping down from the steppes of 
Asia to battle for the possession of India. 

The modern Lahore, where the English dwell, is a splen- 
did city with street-cars, fine villas, a magnificent college, a 
Young Men's Christian Association building, churches, 
hotels, fine drives, and beautiful gardens and orchards. 
The old India is rapidly passing away, and our modern civ- 
ilization is metamorphosing the Land of the Vedas. 



IX. 

Two 2trange Kities. 



N most countries, the cities are much alike, and one city- 
will stand for a representative of all. But it is not so 
in India ; each city has interesting and peculiar features all 
its own, different from those of all the rest. Although we 
had seen thirteen of the great cities of this wonderful coun- 
try, from Madura, in the far south, to Lahore, on the con- 
fines of Afghanistan, we found Jeypore and Bombay no 
less interesting and curious than those we visited when we 
first landed near Cape Comorin. 

Jeypore is indeed unique; there is no other city like it 
in India, or in the world. It is reputed to be the finest na- 
tive city in the country, and it is certainly the cleanest and 
most inviting-looking Indian city which w r e saw. It is the 
capital of a small independent " Raj," about the size of the 
State of Missouri, the British not having yet annexed it. 
It is governed by a Maharajah, the present prince being a 
young man twenty-eight years old. He has four wives, and 
keeps up a considerable establishment about his palace, 
which we visited. His stables were, however, more inter- 
esting than his palace, and we were wdl repaid for a walk 
through them. He has three hundred saddle-horses and 
two hundred carriage-horses, with a separate groom for 
each steed. There were many very beautiful Arab horses 
here, their hair as glossy as satin, and with forms that were 
the very ideal of equine grace and beauty. Their grooms 
told us that they fed them on sugar and grain. The Ma* 
20 (305) 



306 



India, the Land of the Vtdas. 



harajah also has one hundred elephants, eighty for riding 
and twenty for fighting. 

Jevpore is the strangest mixture of the Orient and the 
Occident to be found in India. The streets are exception- 
ally wide and clean, and lined with long rows of pink and 
white houses, built after all styles of strange architecture. 
The Prince has several palaces, six and eight stories high, 
and also a mint, arsenal, hospital, observatory, public 
library, musical conservatory, academy of fine arts, mu- 
seum, etc. The finest building in the city, however, is the 
Prince Albert Hall, a magnificent marble palace which is 
being erected in the beautiful public gardens. It will cost, 
when completed, eight lacs of rupees (two hundred and 
eighty thousand dollars), the money for this purpose having 
been given by the late Maharajah. On the walls of the cor- 
ridors of this building are aphorisms taken from " Indian 
Wisdom," of which the following are specimens: " He has 
all health who has a mind contented." " To one whose foot 
is covered with a shoe, the earth appears carpeted with 
leather." " There is no religion higher than truth." 
" High-minded men delight in doing good without a thought 
of their own interest." " Do naught to others which if 
done to thee would cause thee pain ; this is the sum of duty." 
These are noble sentiments to emanate from a heathen 
source. 

Elephants and camels were as common on the streets of 
Jevpore as are horses in our American cities, and in almost 
every street we entered there w ? ere half a dozen elephants 
in sight, each one of wdiom was larger than Jumbo, with 
" howdahs " on their backs, in which would be seated a 
number of natives. Then there would come a long string 
of camels with great bales of merchandise, or packs of w T ood, 
or huge stones, bearing their burdens as patiently as the 
cad-faced women w^ho are their companions in burden-bear- 



Two Strange Cities. 



307 



ing throughout the entire East. Tigers, leopards, monkeys, 
wild elephants, and other wild animals are abundant in this 
neighborhood, the tiger especially being hunted and feared, 
as he is the sworn enemy of the natives. It is said that 
when the tiger once gets a taste of human flesh he vail be 
satisfied with no other food, and it is by no means uncom- 
mon for a man to be eaten by one of these ferocious animals 
in this locality. Hence the natives set ingenious traps for 
them, and often capture them, receiving a bounty for each 
one caught. The trap is made by digging a hole in the 
ground in the path where a tiger has been tracked, and cov- 
ering it with branches and leaves. This animal, having once 
made a path through the jungle, will always take the same 
route, and hence he is easily caught in this manner. Hav- 
ing fallen into this hole, which is generally some fifteen feet 
deep, he is kept there without food until nearly starved and 
so weakened that he can be secured without difficulty. He 
is then caged, and when in a short time restored by food and 
water to his normal condition, his rage and ferocity know 
no bounds. We saw seven of these man-eating tigers which 
had been secured in this way, and as we passed in front of 
their cages they would spring against the iron bars with 
unearthly roars and open jaws, as though we would be 
but a morsel for them. We could not help looking a little 
anxiously to see how stout the bars were. One of these 
tigers had eaten ten men, and had been caught twenty-five 
miles north of Jeypore. These animals had the most cruel 
expression in their eyes that I have ever seen or imagined. 
I confess that I was glad to get out of their vicinity. 

A few miles from Jeypore is the royal summer palace of 
Ambar, and having obtained the necessary permission from 
the Maharajah to visit it, he sent one of his elephants to take 
us thither. The elephant was a large, docile creature, richly 
caparisoned in scarlet and yellow, with a "Mahout" astride 



308 



India, the Land of the Vcdas. 



his mighty neck, who had in his hand a pointed hook with 
which to prod the gigantic beast. The animal stands in 
mortal dread of this instrument, and it was amusing as well 
as pathetic to see how he obeyed. At the command "Baitho," 
he meekly folded his hind legs and stretched his fore legs 
forward, lowering his body to the earth, when a ladder of 
ten steps was set against his side and we climbed up to the 
howdah. Then he heaved majestically aloft, pitching you 
backward unless you held on tightly, and with another 
heave, which threw you forward, he was on his feet. Then 
he started, and the movement resembled a prolonged earth- 
quake. As "Josh Billings" says about something else, " a 
little of it goes a long ways," and while it was quite an 
experience to have an elephant-ride of some ten miles, I 
have no desire to repeat the experience. It may best be 
compared to a vessel pitching in a head sea, and I have 
heard of the ride making persons seasick, though it had no 
such effect on any of our party. 

We rode seven hundred miles from Jeypore to Bombay, 
being three days and nights on the journey. There are no 
sleeping-cars in India, but everyone carries his own pillows 
and bedding, and we slept very comfortably on our impro- 
vised couches. All the railroad station-houses along this 
route have white domes like mosques, and many of the 
dwelling-houses are similarly built. At Abu Boad I counted 
six large domes on the depot building. There are also 
beautiful little flower-gardens at every station. The railway 
system of India now embraces about ten thousand miles, 
and is being rapidly extended every year. The road-beds 
are all finely ballasted, and iron cross-ties are used alto- 
gether. The trains are run strictly on time, and I do not 
remember that we were five minutes late during our entire 
trip in India, except once when going to Darjeeling. 

While Calcutta is the political capital of India, Bombay 



Two Strange Cities. 



309 



is its commercial metropolis, and there is necessarily a sense 
of rivalry between the two places. They are situated on 
opposite sides of the peninsula, some two thousand miles 
apart, Calcutta being on the Bay of Bengal, and Bombay 
on the Sea of Arabia. But the opening of the Suez canal, 
and the constant communication with England by the Red 
Sea route, has given a great impetus to the latter city, and 
it is growing rapidly. It forms the western gate-way to In- 
dia, and is destined to be the great city of that country. It 
has nine hundred thousand inhabitants, and is already the 
second city in the British Empire. With its admirable lo- 
cation, and its direct communication with the richest parts 
of the country, its supremacy is assured, and its manufact- 
uring interests will assist in the maintenance of its position. 

Bombay is situated on a small island of the same name 
on the Malabar coast, commanding the finest harbor on the 
Eastern seas, and looking over the Sea of Arabia toward 
Muscat and Madagascar, the Persian Gulf, and the Red 
Sea. It was taken by the Portuguese after the capture of 
Goa, in the early part of the sixteenth century, and was aft- 
erward made over to the English as part of the dowry of 
Catherine on her marriage with Charles II. Like Cal- 
cutta, it derives its name from a Hindoo deity, Momba 
Davi, in whose honor one of the largest temples in the city 
is erected. Bombay is the most cosmopolitan city in the 
w r orld. All the tribes of Hindostan are represented in its 
multifarious population, and Hindoos, Mussulmans, Parsees, 
Indo-Britons, Indo-Portuguese, Europeans of every nation, 
Americans, Chinese, and natives of all the countries of 
Western Asia, jostle each other on the streets. If Tenny- 
son's "Parliament of man" ever convenes, it should be in 
this princely city of the Indies. The costumes of the people 
are gay and varied beyond description, and the sea of red, 
yellow, blue, white, green, and purple turbans remind you 



S10 



of the shifting colors of a kaleidoscope. A wide esplanade 
separates the charmed quarters surrouuding the Elphin- 
stone Circle— the Wall Street and the "hub" of Bombay, 
where the Europeans " most do congregate" — from the 
native quarters. In this latter, which are densely thronged 
with a busy multitude, arrayed in all the colors of the rain- 
bow, the houses are of brick from three to six stories high, 
with steep tiled roofs, the lower stories being used for shops 
and bazaars, while the upper floors swarm with women and 
children. 

Bombay boasts some magnificent buildings, and the 
European portion of it is a stately city, with broad streets, 
fine squares ornamented with statuary and fountains, splen- 
did avenues and drives, and sumptuous bungalows. There 
is no more delightful drive in the world than that along 
the base of the Malabar Hill, with the Arabian Sea spread 
out before yon, and the broad avenue lined with oleanders, 
magnolias, jasmines, verbenas, roses, and orange and lemon 
trees. A little back from this thoroughfare stand the vil- 
las and elegant residences of the Europeans, Parsees, and 
rich native merchants, the buildings embowered in foliage, 
tropical plants, and tall palms. 

The Parsees of Bombay number about one hundred thou- 
sand, and represent a large portion of the wealth of the 
citv. They are the bankers and money-changers of the 
East, and are the most enterprising people of India. They 
are the last of an ancient race, and are the descendants of 
the followers of Zoroaster, who were banished from Persia 
twelve centuries ago, choosing rather to leave their native 
land than forsake the faith of their fathers. Through all 
these centuries they have preserved their individuality as 
strikingly as have the Jews, and a Parsee can be recog- 
nized anywhere. But their chief glory lies in the fact that 
they are the lineal descendants of the men who marched 



Two Strange Cities. 



311 



under the banners of Cyrus and Darius, and profess the re- 
ligion of the wise men with whom Daniel was associated, 
and of the mysterious strangers who came from the East to 
bring offerings to the cradle of the world's infant Redeemer 
and King. Still farther back, before the great Aryan fam- 
ily left its ancestral home, a comparatively pure faith was 
held by the common ancestors of the Hindoo, the Persian, 
and the Englishman. How strange it is that after these 
four thousand years of change, these three races, descend- 
ants of a common stock, should again meet and dwell to- 
gether on the soil of India! 

The Zoroastrians have greatly departed from the primi- 
tive faith, and have engrafted Magism and other ideas on 
the original stock, until the modern Parsees worship as their 
deities earth, air, fire, and w r ater. Among these ancient 
Magians, the Zoroastrians found one singular custom to 
which the Parsees still adhere. They could not adopt any 
of the usual methods of disposing of their dead without 
doing violence to their religious scruples. As the corpse 
was considered unclean, to bury it would be to pollute the 
sacred element of earth ; to burn it would be to profane the 
most sacred of all the elements, and to throw it into the sea 
or river would be profanation to that element. So the cus- 
tom was adopted of exposing the bodies to be devoured by 
carrion-eating birds — a method to which the Parsees still 
conform. 

We visited these " Towers of Silence," as they are called, 
on Malabar Hill, where their dead are exposed by the Par- 
sees. This is a high hill overlooking the city and the sea, 
and commanding a magnificent view. Ascending a flight 
of stone steps, we found ourselves in a beautiful garden with 
graveled walks, flowers, luxuriant tropical plants, and 
showing every evidence of taste and culture. Near the 
entrance were two small temples — one a mortuary temple 



312 



India, the Land of the Veda-?. 



where brief funeral services are held, and the other a place 
of worship where the sacred fire is ever kept burning. Be- 
yond this garden lie the five towers, great round structures 
of stone and cement, three hundred feet in circumference 
and one hundred feet high. Inside there is a circular plat- 
form about half-way from the top, paved with large stone 
slabs well cemented, and divided into three rows of shallow, 
open receptacles, corresponding with the three moral pre- 
cepts of the Zoroastrian religion — "good deeds/ 7 "good 
words." " good thoughts." The first row is for males, the 
second for females, and the third for children. The clothes 
of the corpses are removed and thrown into a large tank, 
on the principle that " naked we came into the world, naked 
we go out," Steps lead up from the outside to a door open- 
ing on the platform, up which the official corpse-bearers — 
none others are allowed to approach nearer than one hun- 
dred feet — take the body, strip it, lay it upon the platform, 
and then leave it. Hundreds of hideous vultures fill the 
palm-trees and wait and watch for their awful meals on the 
cornices of the towers. As soon as a body is left exposed 
they gather from all over the hill, swoop down upon it, 
and in a little while the corpse is stripped of its flesh. 
This hideous part of the performance is not visible to the 
spectators, but the re-appearance of the gorged birds within 
an hour is only too significant of what transpired within 
the silent and gloomy inclosure. 'When the bones of the 
denuded skeleton are perfectly dry, they are thrown into a 
deep central well in the tower* the sides and bottom of 
which are paved with stone slabs, where they are allowed 
to crumble into dust. 

While we were in the garden we were so fortunate as to 
Avitness one of their funerals. The pall-bearers came first, 
bearing on a white bier a body covered with a white cloth. 
Behind walked a long procession of mourners, relatives, and 



Two Strange Cities. 



313 



friends, dressed in flowing white robes, marching in pairs, 
each couple joined hand in hand by holding a white hand- 
kerchief between them in token of sympathetic grief. As 
soon as the procession entered the garden the vultures came 
flying from all quarters to the tower toward which they were 
going, and soon the top w-as lined with the terrible birds, 
eager for their horrible feast. The procession approached to 
within the prescribed distance of the tower, halted, went 
through some brief ceremonies, and then the bearers carried 
the corpse w T ithin the tower. Their re-appearance was the 
signal for the vultures to swoop down and begin their work. 

This all seems horrible to us, but here is what the Parsees 
say: "The vultures (nature's scavengers) do their work 
much more expeditiously than millions of insects would do 
if dead bodies were buried in the ground. By this rapid 
process, putrefaction, w 7 ith all its concomitant evils, is most 
effectually prevented." The Parsees thus summarize their 
faith: The soul is immortal. Men and women are free 
moral agents, and are responsible to the great Creator for 
their acts and deeds. In proportion to their good or bad 
acts and deeds they meet with rewards or punishments in 
the next world. Pious and virtuous persons meet with hap- 
piness, but the wicked and sinful suffer pain and misery. 

Another unique institution which we visited in Bombay — 
the only one of its kind I suppose in the world — was the 
" Pingrapole," or asylum for old, wounded, sick, and infirm 
animals and birds. Here w T ere found all kinds of animals, 
suffering from all kinds of afflictions, cared for as tenderly 
as though they were human beings in a well-regulated hos- 
pital. The establishment is about fifty years old, and owes 
its origin to a philanthropic Hindoo, who endowed it at his 
death with eight lacs of rupees. The yards and buildings 
cover about two acres in the heart of the native quarter of 
the city, and every necessary arrangement seems to be made 



314 



India, the Land of the Vcdas. 



for the comfort of the inmates. Here were old, spavined, 
bony horses, some with one leg gone. A large house was 
filled with a multitude of pigeons, chickens, and rabbits, all 
either old and decrepid or suffering from some malady. 
About a hundred curs of high and low degree were in a 
great pen or cage, who set up a howl as soon as we came 
in sight, which increased until it was perfectly deafening as 
we approached nearer. I have never in my life heard such 
a dog chorus, and hope never to again. In the ophthalmic 
ward were a hundred blind cattle. In the surgical ward 
was another lot of about two hundred cattle with legs gone 
or with broken or deformed legs. Xo animal carried there 
for treatment is ever returned. Charity patients or animals 
picked up on the streets are taken care of free, but if the 
owner brings an old or diseased horse he is required to pay 
twenty-five rupees as an admittance fee. Two rupees are 
charged for a cow or bullock, and two rupees for taming a 
clog, the latter being the only animal which it is permitted 
to take out. There is a free animal dispensary, and a sur- 
geon and about fifty men are employed in the establish- 
ment. There are three branch establishments near Bom- 
bay. 

We devoted one day to a visit to the celebrated Kock 
Caves of Elephanta, which are on an island about six miles 
in circumference, situated some ten miles from the city. 
These caves are excavated from the solid rock, and, like 
similar ones in other portions of Western India, are sup- 
posed to be the deserted temples of a by-gone and forgotten 
age. The approach from the sea is by a long flight of near- 
ly a thousand stone steps, and the entrance is through mag- 
nificent door-ways cut in the face of the precipice. The 
principal cave is one hundred and fifty feet long, by one 
hundred and twenty feet wide, the roof being supported by 
some twenty massive pillars cut out of the rock. All around 



Two Strange Cities, 



315 



the sides of the great cave are groups of figures of Brahma, 
Vishnu, Siva, and their attendants. Three groups occupy 
the entire south end of the cave. The central figure rep- 
resents a pair of giant shoulders from which spring three 
great heads. This piece is fifteen feet wide and twenty feet 
high. On either side there are two central colossal figures 
twenty feet high and naked, surrounded by smaller figures 
of worshipers, some of which are kneeling. There are twen- 
ty-three of these smaller figures in the right-hand group. 

To the right of the entrance, but wholly within the cave, 
is a small chapel which contains only, in the center, an im- 
mense stone Lingam, the universal symbol of Brahmanism. 
A similar chapel opens into the larger cave. There are sev- 
eral smaller caves similar in construction to the large ones. 
All these cavities, with the figures, pillars, etc., were hewn 
out of the solid rock. 

Most writers attribute these cave-temples to the Buddhists, 
but to my mind it is very clear that they are Brahmanistic, 
and probably antedate the era of Buddhism. When that 
great reformation swept over India, driving out Brahman- 
ism for a time, these temples in common with other Hindoo 
temples were deserted, and have never been used since, 
standing there in their silence and desolation a witness of 
the civilization and religion of a by-gone age. No Phallic 
symbol is ever seen in a Buddhist temple, and the fact that 
one is found here proves its Hindoo origin, which is corrob- 
orated by the numerous representations of the Hindoo trin- 
ity. 



Life in India and the Orient 



E are apt to think and speak of India as one country 
with one language and one race of men, whereas in 
reality it is composed of a number of nations, speaking 
twenty-three different languages, and devoted to various 
faiths and forms of civilization. It has more states, lan- 
guages, and people than all Europe, having over two hun- 
dred and fifty different dialects. The peninsula is an in- 
verted triangle, and is about two thousand miles from Cape 
Comorin, on the south, to the northern limits of the Punjab. 
It is two days by rail from Tuticorin, near the equator, to 
Madras, four days by steamer up the Bay of Bengal to Cal- 
cutta, and then two days more by rail before you get into 
the farther part of the north-west provinces. It is nineteen 
hundred miles from east to west at the widest point, and 
has every diversity of soil and climate, from the hills of the 
Punjab to the vast alluvial plain of Bengal, and from the 
snows of the Himalayas to the hot, jungly swamps of the 
south. It is divided into two hundred and twenty-one 
British districts, and one hundred and fifty-three feudatory 
states, with a total population of two hundred and fifty mill- 
ions. The average density of the population to the square 
mile is one hundred and thirty-five persons, though in Oude 
and Rohilcund the density is four hundred and seventy- 
four, and three hundred and sixty-one respectively, and 
therefore, is probably the most compact population in the 
world, England having three hundred and sixty-seven, and 
(316) 



Life in India and the Orient. 



317 



the United States only twenty-six persons to the square 
mile. The province of Bengal alone is nearly five times as 
large as the State of New York, and supports a population 
as numerous as that of the United States. This province is 
known throughout the East as the Garden of Eden. The 
Ganges flows through it, and on the banks of this sacred 
stream are the holiest shrines, the richest marts, and the 
most populous cities of India. As this river rushes through 
a hundred channels to the sea, it has formed a vast plain of 
rich mold, which is one of the most fertile spots on earth. 
Sugar-cane, Indian corn, spices, cotton, millet, and the veg- 
etable oils are produced in great abundance, and under 
proper conditions and cultivation this province alone could 
support the entire population of India. 

There are in India 187,937,450 Hindoos, 50,121,585 
Mohammedans, 6,426,511 nature worshipers, 3,418,884 
Buddhists, 1,862,334 Christians, 1,853,426 Sikhs, and 1,- 
221,895 Jains. The nature worshipers represent the abo- 
riginal population of India, the " hill-tribes," found mostly 
in the central and northern provinces. Of the Christian 
population two-thirds are Roman Catholic. 

It is commonly supposed that the people of India are a 
black race, but, with the exception of the Tamils in the 
south, who are very dark, they range from a dark transpar- 
ent brown to a complexion almost as light as the Caucasian. 
It is exceedingly interesting to note the change in the ap- 
pearance of the people as one goes north, and when you 
reach the Punjab, you find at Lahore, a straight, erect, 
fair people, soldierly and dignified in their bearing, and with 
all the pride which can be inspired by an Aryan ancestry 
dating back four thousand years. All the inhabitants of 
India, however, are erect in their carriage, with straight 
hair and most beautiful eyes. Their picturesque costumes 
are worn with grace and artistic effect, and there is no more 



318 



India, the Land of ihe Vedas. 



striking sight than to pass through a great city like Bom- 
bay, and see the throngs of natives with their draperies in 
all the colors of the rainbow. The women wear soft, grace- 
ful drajoeries of many-colored silk — the better class I mean 
— with long veils floating back. They are neither dresses, 
nor wraps, nor cloaks, but scarfs all draped and folded 
around them in some mysterious and indescribable fashion, 
a group of them together looking like a flower-garden, and 
their beauty being of no mean type. 

The better classes of this people are contemplative and 
philosophic, and declare in one of their favorite songs ; 

From the East, by the power of the Merciful One, 
Lights of Science, Religion, and Culture have shone. 

There are vast numbers of as refined and cultivated men 
to be met with among the Hindoos as are to be found any- 
where in the world. We rode with a Hindoo pundit from 
Umritsar to Delhi who was the master of half a dozen lan- 
guages, a member of the advanced branch of the Brahmo 
Somaj, and as intelligent as any college professor in Amer- 
ica. So that it is a great mistake to suppose that all these 
people are an ignorant and debased set. The magnificent 
temples and noble monuments scattered through the land; 
the great cities and innumerable art industries; their archi- 
tecture, poetry, legends, and philosophies; their songs, re- 
ligions, music, and usages, all prove that they have been a 
great people and are capable of a yet grander future. 
Give them a Christian civilization, educate and elevate the 
masses, infuse new life and greater diversity into their in- 
dustries, break the spell of caste, and throw off the crushing 
weight of Brahmanism, and India will become one of the 
foremost nations of the East. God has not made a more 
beautiful domain than this fair land of the Vedas, and her 
vast plains may yet blossom as the rose. It is true that al- 
most every acre of arable land is now under cultivation, 



Life in India and the Orient, 



319 



but the implements used are the most primitive, and the 
methods of tillage are the same that have obtained for four 
thousand years. Many of the mechanical arts are yet 
largely in their infancy, and, except at Bombay, there are 
scarcely any manufacturing industries. But Bombay is 
rapidly becoming the Manchester of the East, and at least 
a hundred smoke-stacks of her manufactories can be count- 
ed from Malabar Hill. The cotton-factories alone number 
over seventy. 

Life in the Orient is as different from that amid the mad 
rush of our "Western civilization as their slow ox-carts differ 
from the plunge of a locomotive engine. Nobody ever gets 
in a hurry in the East ; business begins at ten and closes at 
three; and eating and sleeping are the chief occupations. 
The eating begins early and lasts until late. At six in the 
morning, the " choto hazeri," or 4< little breakfast," of coffee 
or tea and toast, is brought to your room; at nine or ten 
breakfast is served ; " tiffin " or lunch is at one ; and at sev- 
en comes dinner, the great meal of the day. No business 
is ever transacted after this, and even in the large cities every 
thing is closed. The streets are deserted until after dinner, 
when the houses empty themselves into the parks and gar- 
dens. 

The servants in India are obsequious in the extreme, but 
they expect pay for every little service, and their demands 
make no small tax upon one's pocket-book. Each one has 
his own duties to discharge, and in no case will they inter- 
fere with each other. Before you grow accustomed to it, 
you feel quite like a lord, with half a dozen white-robed and 
colored-turbaned Orientals constituting your train and obe- 
dient to your every beck and call, but your dignity soon 
becomes rather burdensome, and you begin to feel as if you 
were haunted. You are awakened in the morning by one 
of them gliding in stealthily and setting your coffee and 



320 



India, the Land of the Vedas. 



toast upon a little stand by your bed. You begin to dress, 
and are startled by some one calling " Sahib" gently at 
your elbow, and there stands another draped figure ready 
to brush your clothes. You cannot turn around during 
the day but that a gorgeously attired Sikh, dressed like a 
pirate, and with the air of a prince, stands ready to antici- 
pate your wishes. Finally, at night, you banish them all 
from your room, lock the door, and think you are rid of 
them for one day at least ; but having occasion to step out 
into the hall, there is one of the ubiquitous troop coiled up 
at your door, and in a moment he is on his feet, ready for 
service or sacrifice. When you prepare to leave the hotel, 
they are all ranged in order by the door, and it requires a 
brave man to close his heart and pocket-book and pass the 
expectant group without bestowing " backshish." It is 
said that in the East the servants pay the hotel proprietors 
for the privilege of thus making the lives of the guests a 
burden, and I can well believe that it constitutes one of the 
chief sources of revenue. One stopping at these Eastern 
hotels finds an ingenious combination of the American and 
European systems — he pays a stipulated sum per day, and 
then gets a bill of particulars besides, which gives him all 
the pleasures of the European plan. One can never know 
what his hotel bill is to be until he gets ready to leave, and 
he sighs for our American hotels, which are, beyond ques- 
tion, the best in the world. * 

We struck the beggars in India, and " backshish " became 
a familiar term to us long before we reached Bombay. The 
children would run after us, hang upon the carriage, follow 
us a mile, begging, shrieking, howling, dropping oflfone by 
one, swept behind by the weight of a copper thrown to 
them. Old men and old women everywhere " sat by the 
way-side begging," and frequently great stalwart specimens 
of humanity, fully as able to work as we were, would beg 



Life in India and the Orient. 



321 



us most piteously for apyce. These Orientals have no con- 
ception of traveling as a fine art, such a thing as going on 
a journey merely for pleasure or profit being beyond their 
powers of imagination, and hence they consider all travelers 
as lunatics or idiots with the wealth of a Croesus, and give 
them no rest until they "backshish" them. Some one has 
appropriately said that in the East even the dogs bark " back- 
shish." 

The bazaar is an Oriental microcosm, and is one of the 
most characteristic institutions of the East. It is a long 
narrow lane, or congeries of lanes, frequently roofed over, 
on each side of which are the little shops, entirely open next 
to the street, and not much bigger than a dry-goods box or 
a Saratoga trunk. In the center of his goods squats the 
merchant, and the narrow streets are streams of glancing 
colors more brilliant than any picture. Each bazaar keeps 
its own goods, whether of silk, brass, gold, silver, arms, cu- 
rios, spice, or fruit. By no chance does one merchant keep 
more than one kind of goods. But in these bazaars, or col- 
lection of bazaars, the silks of Benares, the muslins of Ben- 
gal, and the sabers of Oude are found with the jewels of 
Golconda and the shaw T ls of Cashmere. 

Any one who attempts to make a purchase in an Eastern 
bazaar will have a fine illustration of Oriental duplicity and 
double-dealing. The seller always demands a price very 
largely in excess of the value of the article, or what he i3 
really willing to take, and then descends the ladder until he 
meets the purchaser and both are made happy — the mer- 
chant in the consciousness that he has received more than 
the article is worth, and the buyer in the pleasing delusion 
that he has made a purchase below the market value. The 
asking price is invariably from three to six times as much 
as the vender is willing to take, and I several times saw an 
article sell for one-tenth of what was at first demanded, the 
SI 



822 



India, iJie Land of ilte Yedas. 



merchant protesting all the time that the sale would land 
him on the verge of bankrupt cy. 

3Iy friends wished to purchase some Cashmere shawls at 
Umritsar, which is only two days' journey from the Vale 
of Cashmere. They found what they wanted in a narrow 
back street, up a steep flight of steps, and in a little eight 
by ten room. Here were the finest plush carpets worth ten 
dollars per yard; Cashmere and camel's-hair shawls rang- 
ing from twenty rupees to five thousand; rugs, caps, slip- 
pers, the softest goat's and camel's hair fabrics woven in the 
looms of Cashmere and Afghanistan, and all that could 
tempt the lover of the beautiful. There was about three 
lacs of rupees' (§100,000) worth of stock in this insignificant 
little shop, but the owner's asking price made him a million- 
aire. I think that my friends' purchases were at about one- 
fifth what was at first asked for them, and they afterwards 
discovered that they had paid one-third more than the real 
value. I asked one of these merchants why he did not have 
one price and stick to it. He answered, "Ask proper price 
master no give. Little tell lie, then come proper. What 
biggest price master give?" And so it goes. You get so 
accustomed to this method of dealing that you never know 
when they have reached their real price, and the purchase 
of an article worth two rupees is attended with an amount 
of haggling and bartering which would suffice for the buy- 
ing of a thousand-acre farm at home, and you may almost 
invariably have the pleasing consciousness that with all 
vour caution you have nevertheless been cheated. 

Everv man who wants any thing from you in the East, 
or who does you any service, has a long list of certificates of 
his efficiency and faithfulness, and when you are through 
with him you must add your recommendation, and go to 
record as an appreciative admirer of genius of the first or- 
der. These certificates meet you at every step, and from 



Life in India and the Orient 



323 



your gorgeously attired dragoman, whose recommendations 
would fit him to hold the combined offices of President of 
the American Bible Society, and caterer to Delmonico, to 
the beggar who howls "backshish," and thrusts in your face 
a greasy indorsement signed by a large number of " distin- 
guished Americans," those who hold them are usually as 
worthless and as ignorant of the simple duties devolving 
upon them as any cooly whom you might pick up. Trav- 
elers give these indorsements as freely as they sign appli- 
cations for Government appointments at home. At the 
Dak Bungalow at Jeypore the proprietor insisted on the us- 
ual certificate, although we told him we had nothing good 
to say of his house. But he was so persistent that at last 
we certified that u the jam had given out, the coffee was cold, 
the bread was sour, and that there was room for improve- 
ment in all particulars." He took it as complacently as 
though we had pronounced his establishment a second Fifth 
Avenue Hotel, and was profuse in his bows and thanks. 

A somewhat analogous custom to this is the one of pre- 
senting addresses to distinguished visitors. In America, 
when a great man visits a city, he is called upon for a 
speech ; in India the citizens meet him at the depot and read 
a speech to him. When the Prince of Wales visited India 
a few years ago, every city and village presented him with 
an embossed address; and in the recent Queen's Jubilee, 
which was being celebrated during our visit, similar ad- 
dresses of congratulation were made to her. 

People who enjoy seeing monkeys could go to a menage- 
rie every day in India. At Lucknow we drove out a mile 
from the city, purchasing a few cents' worth of grain on our 
way, and in a small forest found great throngs of monkeys, 
little and big, young and old, some of them looking old 
enough and wise enough to be the ancestors of Darwin. 
As we threw the grain on the ground they came trooping 



324 India, the Land of the Vedas. 

from every direction, leaping, jumping, running, fighting, 
and playing, until we thought we had found Shylock's ver- 
itable "wilderness of monkeys." Afterward we saw hun- 
dreds of them on the road between Jeypore and Bombay. 
They were under hedges, in the trees, running along the 
embankments, making faces at the passing train, and scam- 
pering for dear life if any one threw a stone among them. 
Being sacred animals, no one disturbs them, and they mul- 
tiply in vast numbers. 

The " Punkah " is another institution in the East which 
no one can appreciate who has not felt the hot, stifling air 
of the tropics. They are great fans of white cloth suspended 
from the ceiling on a pivot, and operated by a punkah coo- 
ly, who pulls a string connected with them. The first we 
saw were in the English cathedral at Singapore, and the 
movement of at least twenty of them in the gas-light has a 
weird and ghost-like effect. During the hot season they 
go night and day in dwellings, business-houses, shops, and 
every other place where men congregate, as comfort or sleep 
is impossible without them. The mosquitoes and the heat 
rendered them necessary when we were in Madras, and sev- 
eral nights we enjoyed a refreshing rest which we could not 
otherwise have had. 

We would like to linger in India, for it- is to us full of 
interest and fascination. But we must hasten on to Egypt, 
and regretfully leave this land, with its swarming popula- 
tion, its steaming vats, its vast fertile plains, its great cities, 
and its grand opening future. But since we have reached 
home our thoughts have often gone far away over bound- 
less seas and deserts to those dusky nations, living under 
strange stars, worshiping strange gods, and with a strange 
history full of romance and poetry. 



XI. ' 

Missionary Operations, 

JM ISSIONARY work began in India in the year 1705, 
)}*&jL when Ziegenbalg and Plutschan, who had been stu- 
dents at the University of Halle, went to Tranquebar and 
began their labors. In 1711, Ziegenbalg finished the trans- 
lation of the New Testament into Tamil, and by 1719, the 
year of his death, he had translated as far as Ruth in the 
Old Testament. Schultz, who arrived in 1719, resumed 
the translation at this point, and finished it in 1725. These 
were all under the auspices of the Danish Missionary So- 
ciety, which was the pioneer organization in this field. In 
1750 Swartz, whose godliness commanded the admiration of 
all classes, and in whose memory the Rajah of Tanjore 
erected a monument, sailed for Tranquebar, and that year 
four hundred were baptized. Swartz has w r ell been called 
" The apostle of India," and his work still lives in Southern 
India. In 1792 the pioneer English "Society for Propa- 
gating the Gospel among the Heathen " was organized, 
mainly through the tireless efforts of William Carey, the 
pious cobbler of Paulerspury. Although this first society 
numbered only twelve members, " expecting great things 
from God, and attempting great things for God," they laid 
on his altar thirteen pounds two shillings and sixpence as 
their first offerings for Missions. But it was not long before 
funds flowed in from various quarters, and the next year 
Carey sailed for Calcutta. His work being opposed by the 
East India Company, he went up the country and took a 

(325) 



32(3 



India, the Land of the Vedds. 



situation iu connection with an indigo-factory near Malda. 
He continued, however, his missionary work in a quiet war, 
and in 1799 he was joined by Marshman and Ward from 
England, when they established themselves under Danish 
protection at Serampore. Here they translated the Bible, 
established presses, founded a college, preached, toiled, and 
kept to the letter the agreement made when they entered 
on their work. " Let us give ourselves up unreservedly to 
this glorious cause. Let us never think that our time, our 
gifts, our strength, our families, or even the clothes we wear, 
are our own. Let us sanctify them all to God and his 
cause." They have gone to their reward, and their " works 
do follow them."' 

The Baptist Missionary Society, which grew out of this 
organization, has been one of the most successful in India in 
the work of evangelization. It now occupies in all about 
one hundred and fifty stations and sub-stations, and has 
forty-three European and fifty native missionaries or as- 
sistants, with ninety-three native evangelists. The native 
Church-members connected with the Society number over 
four thousand, representing a nominal Christian community 
of about ten thousand. 

Since Carey begun his work in India, the cause has grown 
until to-day there are thirty-six great missionary organiza- 
tions, having seven hundred and ninety-one representatives 
in the field, and five hundred and thirty native ordained 
agents. The native Christians number four hundred and 
forty-nine thousand seven hundred and fifty-five, and the 
communicants one hundred and thirty-seven thousand five 
hundred and four — an increase of thirty-two thousand three 
hundred and eighty-three Christians, and twenty-four thou- 
sand three hundred and sixty-seven communicants since 
1881. The increase is not simply in arithmetical, but in 
geometrical, progression. Within a period of ten years the 



Miss to n ary Op emtio ns. 



327 



gain in the native Christian community lias been: In the 
North-west Provinces, sixty-three per cent. ; in Bengal, sixty- 
seven per cent. ; in Madras, eighty-six per cent. ; in Central 
India, ninety-two per cent.; in Ou.de, one hundred and 
eleven per cent. ; in the Punjab, one hundred and fifty-five 
per cent. ; and in Bombay, one hundred and eighty per cent. 
Nor is the increase in numbers the only gain that Christian- 
ity has made in India. Christians are honored and respected, 
and they take the lead in intelligence and integrity. Even 
the Brahmans themselves are forced to acknowledge the good 
effects of Christianity. In the report of the Madura Mis- 
sion of the American Board, Mr. Hazen says : " The Chris- 
tians are more truthful, more honest, and more peaceable 
than their neighbors. Hindoos as well as Christians can see 
a growth in moral chaimcter among Christians." "And," 
says Mr. Chandler, " did they not show an improvement in 
manners and morals, I should indeed be discouraged. A 
thorough reformation is not a thing of a day. But the 
leavening process is certainly going on." 

What may be called the indirect results of missionary 
efforts in India can hardly be estimated. Methods of living 
have been changed; the Christian home has taught thou- 
sands of them how to live; schools, colleges, and universi- 
ties have been founded; books and newspapers have been 
multiplied; hospitals and orphanages are springing up 
wherever needed; and nearly all the advances of modern 
times have now a place in India. The abolition of infanti- 
cide, the suppression of the Suttee, and the forbiddance of 
suicide under the wheels of the car of Juggernaut were all 
brought about through the missionaries. 

The Government of India recently gave in its Blue Book 
this emphatic indorsement of the good results flowing from 
missionary w r ork: " No statistics can give a fair view of all 
that the missionaries have done. The moral tone of their 



328 



India, the Land of the Vedas. 



preaching is recognized by hundreds who do not follow them 
as converts. The lessons which they inculcate have given 
to the people new ideas, not only on purely religious 
questions, but on the nature of evil, the obligations of law, 
and the motives by which human conduct should be regu- 
lated. Insensibly a higher standard of moral conduct is 
becoming familiar to the people. The Government of India 
cannot but acknowledge the great obligation under which 
it is laid by the benevolent exertions made by the six hun- 
dred missionaries whose blameless example and self-deny- 
ing labors are infusing new vigor into the life of the great 
populations placed under English rule." 

Sir Bartle Frere said in a lecture delivered a few years 
ago : " I speak simply as to matters of experience and ob- 
servation, and not of opinion, just as a Roman prefect might 
have reported to Trajan or the Antonines, and I assure you 
that, whatever you may be told to the contrary, the teaching 
of Christianity among one hundred and sixty million of civ- 
ilized, industrious Hindoos and Mohammedans in India is 
effecting changes, moral, social, and political, which, for 
extent and rapidity of effect, are far more extraordinary 
than anything that you or your fathers have witnessed in 
modern Europe."' 

Keshub Chunder Sen, the founder of the Brahmo Somaj, 
before his death, held up the missionary to the everlasting 
gratitude of India, and declared that " Christ, not the Brit- 
ish Government, rules India." 

A jubilee was recently held in Tinnevelly to commemorate 
Bishop Sargeant's fifty years of service under the Church 
Missionary Society. He has now six hundred assistants, 
twelve thousand communicants, and a Christian community 
of sixty thousand. Sir Richard Temple, who has been 
Governor of both the Bengal and Bombay Presidencies, says 
that if the growth of Christianity goes on at the rate of its 



Mission a ry Op erections. 



329 



present advancement, "there will, by the year 1910, be 
about two million native Christians in India/' 

The Rev. George Kerry, of Calcutta, says there proba- 
bly never was a time when the indications of the working 
of divine power in the hearts of the multitudes of India were 
as strong as now. The people show a growing desire to pos- 
sess and read the Gospels, and crowds listen attentively wher- 
ever the gospel is preached. There will shortly be a great 
gathering of the people to at least a nominal Christianity. 
The Rev. Daniel Jones, of Agra, says the changes going on 
in India are astounding. • Natives are lecturing against 
child-marriage, widow re-marriage is rapidly gaining 
ground, and new sects, far more tolerant of Christianity, are 
springing up. 

Romanath R. Chowdhry, of Allahabad, speaks of the 
strange eagerness of the natives to purchase the Scriptures, 
and of the increasing number of people who have renounced 
the religion of their fathers. Many others bear similar tes- 
timony, and Max Muller said to Norman McLeod that he 
knew of no people as ripe for Christianity to-day as the East 
Indians. 

The logic of these facts is irresistible. It is not in vain 
that six hundred missionaries are sleeping in the soil of In- 
dia. If the consecrated wealth of the Church should be 
laid upon the altar of Missions, not two hundred years nor 
one hundred years would elapse before this Land of the 
Vedas would become a land of Bibles, and her swarming 
millions would bow at the foot of the cross. 



EGYPT, "THE HOMESTEAD OF NATIONS/ 



HEKE sits drear Egypt, 'mid beleaguering sands, 
Half woman and half beast. 
The burnt-out torch within her moldering hands 

That once lit all the East. — Lowell. 

Here desolation keeps unbroken Sabbath, 
'Mid caves and temples, palaces and sepulchers; 
Ideal images in sculptured forms, 
Thoughts hewn in columns, or in caverned hills, 
In honor of their deities and of their dead. 

— Montgomery. 
(331) 




I 



I. 

Sakkara and the Pyramids, 



fj APOLEON called the East "The cradle of all relig- 



ions, the birthplace of all metaphysics," and some one 
has appropriately styled Egypt " The Homestead of Na- 
tions." Here, on the banks of the Nile, was born and nurt- 
ured the earliest civilization of which the world knows, and 
as to-day, after the lapse of thousands of years, the archae- 
ologist studies the monuments, statues, pictures, and hie- 
roglyphic records of that traditional period, the civili- 
zation of the nineteenth century looks on with wonder, 
and finds that in many things it has made no progress. 
Egypt is a continual marvel to the traveler, and he may 
well inquire for the causes which developed so remarkable a 
people. It is very probable that as Egypt owed her fertil- 
ity and material prosperity to the Nile, so it was this same 
river which stimulated the ancient Egyptians to those great 
intellectual exertions which rendered them the most fa- 
mous and the most civilized among the nations of antiquity. 
The necessity of controlling its course and utilizing its waters 
taught them the art of water-engineering and the kindred 
science of land-surveying. As every thing depended on the 
overflow, and as the heavens only could tell them when the 
period was approaching, an impulse to the study of astron- 
omy was thus given. As the annual inundation obliterated 
all landmarks, it was necessary to keep a register of the 
lands and owners, and to have strict laws enforcing the 
rights of property. 




(333 



334 Egypt, "The Homestead of Nations." 



Thus a civil code early arose in Egypt, which formed the 
basis for the Roman law and all subsequent systems of 
jurisprudence. So that the Nile thus led to the foundation 
of civil, social, and political order, and it was natural 
also that it should awaken their religious sentiments. 
All this stimulated their intellectual faculties, and doubtless 
contributed largely to make them a great people. 

The most magnificent monuments of Egypt are her tombs. 
In fact, the Valley of the Nile is one vast necropolis, and 
the tombs of the embalmed dead are scattered everywhere. 
After seeing the Pyramids and exploring the interior of 
Cheops, I have no doubt but that those vast structures were 
intended as places of sepulture by the kings who reared 
them. There are no less than seventy pyramids in the Val- 
ley of the Nile, and Herodotus, 443 B.C., speaks of them as 
of great antiquity. Of course all other pyramids pale before 
the three great pyramids of Gizeh, which are situated on 
a gradually ascending plateau, nine miles from Cairo. 
These pyramids are not only the greatest, but the oldest, 
monuments ever reared by the hand of man. They were 
as much a marvel and mystery when Rome was young as 
they are now, and they had been standing a thousand years 
when Homer sung of the siege of Troy. It is claimed by 
the best authority that the great pyramid was built about 
2170 B.C., and had consequently been standing for two 
hundred years when Abraham was born. 

According to Herodotus, one hundred thousand men 
were employed twenty years in the construction of this pyr- 
amid. Its perpendicular height is four hundred and fifty 
feet, and the length of each side is now seven hundred and 
fifty feet, but was formerly about seven hundred and sixty- 
eight feet. The sides rise at an angle of nearly fifty -two de- 
grees, and the stupendous structure covers an area of about 
thirteen acres. It is built of a rough, hard sandstone, over 



Sakkara and the Pyramids. 



335 



which there was formerly a thick coating of plaster, so that 
it presented a smooth surface, but this has all now worn off, 
and its appearance is very rough and jagged. Some idea 
of its immense size, and of the quantity of material used 
in its construction, may be gathered from the estimate 
made by actual measurement, that if all the blocks of stone 
composing it were placed end to end, they w T ould make a 
wall a foot and a half broad and ten feet high around En- 
gland, a distance of eight hundred and eighty-three miles. 

One of our first excursions after reaching Cairo was to 
the Pyramids. We drove past the magnificent New Hotel 
and the Ezbekiyeh Garden ; through the wide, dusty streets 
lined with palatial houses and presenting the same ani- 
mated kaleidoscopic scenes of vivid color and picturesque 
costume and indolent waiting on Providence which we have 
become accustomed to everywhere in the Orient; over the 
fine iron bridge across the Nile, and down the long avenue, 
planted on each side with lebbekh and sycamore trees. 
We passed on the way numerous palaces of the Khedive, 
for it is said that Ismail Pasha built a new palace as often 
as he ordered a new suit of clothes. On either side of the 
avenue are green fields of wheat, corn, barley, and beans, 
intersected by irrigating canals, along the banks of which 
rise stately palms and clumps of acacias. Two hours' drive 
brings us to the foot of the rocky platform, rising one hun- 
dred feet above the plain, on which stand the mighty Pyra- 
mids, keeping watch over the centuries. At last we stand 
at the base of Great Cheops, and are at once surrounded by 
a noisy, clamorous group of Arabs. The Bedouin tribe 
living in a miserable little village near the foot of the Pyr- 
amids claims a kind of ownership in these monuments, and 
their property yields them a good revenue. The Sheik of 
the tribe assigns guides and climbers, and receives pay for 
their services, which is divided out among the families. 



336 



Egypt, " The Homestead of Nations." 



But you are expected to pay " backshish," in addition to 
your regular charge, to your assistants and guides. 

The ascent of the Pyramids is made at one of the cor- 
ners, but it is extremely difficult, the stones which serve as 
steps being three or four feet thick, and we decided not to 
attempt it. But we explored the interior of Cheops, which 
was quite enough glory for one day. The entrance is forty 
feet up the side of the pyramid, and it is no small climb to 
reach it. Three Arabs were detailed as my body-guard, 
and into the heart of the mighty monument we plunged. 
One sweltering Arab named Abraham was on one side with 
a lighted candle, and another named Hassan el Mahmoud 
was on the other, while the third man came behind to 
" boost." We went three hundred feet down a narrow pas- 
sage through stifling dust; then crept through a low open- 
ing not more than two feefc high, and ascended a smooth 
plane only three feet high, at an angle of forty-five degrees, 
w T ith back and knees bent double until both were almost 
broken; then down again for a little distance; then up a 
narrow ledge which runs along a deep well for one hundred 
and fifty feet, called the Great Passage; after which we 
crept through three or four portcullises, and emerged, drip- 
ping with perspiration and covered with dust, into the 
king's chamber, a room thirty-four feet long, seventeen 
broad, and nineteen high, in which was the great empty 
porphyry sarcophagus. The sarcophagus was not original- 
ly placed in this chamber, but was in a small niche just 
over the door. The chamber is situated about the center 
of the pyramid, and is built of magnificent blocks of sye- 
nite, polished and fitted together so perfectly that a knife- 
blade cannot be inserted in the joints. 

As soon as we entered this room, the twelve Arabs con- 
stituting our escort set up a deafening shout of triumph, 
which sounded like a Comanche war* whoop. As soon as 



Sakkara and the Pyramids, 



337 



possible we quieted them, and when we had satisfied our- 
selves w 7 ith our examinations, began our toilsome journey 
backward. My Arab guides soon began to clamor for 
"backshish/' and every few minutes they w T ould ask, 
"How you feel? I satisfy you, you satisfy me." At last 
the light appeared, glimmering down the long passage, and 
w 7 hen at last we stood once more in the pure air and the 
glad sunshine, w T e felt almost as if we had been delivered 
from a living tomb. We were " satisfied," and we tried to 
satisfy our attendants, although that is a hopeless task in 
the East, for however much you pay a native for any serv- 
ice, he will invariably, like Oliver Twist, cry for more. 

Not far from the Pyramids, the Sphinx raises its huge 
body out of the shifting sands of the desert. It was cut 
from the solid rock on which it stands, and was approached 
by a flight of descending stairs. On the paved platform in 
front were two small temples, and between the extended 
paws, which are fifty feet apart, was an altar. The animal 
had a lion's body and a man's head, the union of intellect 
and physical force, and is of colossal proportions. From 
the crown of the head to the pavement is sixty-six feet, and 
the extreme breadth of the face is nearly fourteen feet. 
The features, as well as the attitude, convey an impression 
of profound repose. The former are so much mutilated 
that it is difficult to realize now what this strange and mon- 
strous union of beast and man once was, when all the hup*e 

7 o 

proportions stood revealed and color gave startling life- 
likeness to the giant face. 

The history of the Sphinx is unknown; it has stood on 
the edge of that terrace of tombs, watching for the dawn 
of day, for immemorial ages. All the history of the race 
of which we know any thing has been enacted since that 
watch begun. Old writers say that the face was once sweet 
and beautiful, and even now you can catch the trace of a 
22 



338 E'J'Jpt* "The Homestead of Nations. 



smile around the mouth. It is a wonderful monument, and 
once seen will never be forgotten. 

Another day we went to Sakkara, passing on the way 
the site of the once proud city of Memphis. But this old 
capital of the Pharaohs, one of the most magnificent cities 
of antiquity, has so completely disappeared that the travel- 
er needs a guide to discover a vestige of it. 

When Herodotus visited Memphis, about four hundred 
and fifty years before Christ, it was a splendid city, built, 
so the priests of Vulcan informed him, by Menes, the first 
king of Egypt, more than three thousand years previously. 
Four hundred years later, Diodorus found it magnificent 
with temples, palaces, gardens, villas, and acres of common 
dwellings : and even as late as the end of the twelfth century, 
when it had been systematically despoiled to build Cairo, 
an Arab traveler says that "its ruins occupy a space half a 
day's journey every way," and that its wonders could not 
be described. 

It was to this famous capital that Moses and Aaron came 
to ask Pharaoh to let the children of Israel go, and here 
were performed the miracles of the plagues. This is the 
scriptural Noph, against which burned the wrath of the 
prophets. " Noph shall be waste and desolate without an 
inhabitant." " I will cause their images to cease out of 
Noph." The images have ceased and the temples have dis- 
appeared; the city lies desolate and forsaken, without an 
inhabitant, its very name obliterated from the page of his- 
tory. 

The largest temple in Memphis was the great Temple of 
Ptah, at the entrance to which stood a statue of Eameses 
the Great, cut out of a single block of hard and fine- 
grained limestone, and weighing nearly nine hundred tons. 
Herodotus, who saw it two thousand three hundred years 
ago, says that there was inscribed on it : " I am the King 



Sale/car a and the Pyramids. 



of Kings. If any man wish to know how great I am and 
where I lie, let him surpass one of my works." This great 
statue was pulled down by a later conqueror, Cambyses the 
Persian, and lay for centuries hidden away beneath piles of 
debris. Some years ago this colossal statue, forty-two feet 
in length, was discovered, but it has never been raised. It 
lies in a hollow, with its face to the ground, and workmen 
are now engaged in raising it, though the process is a slow 
and tedious one. But it has been raised sufficiently for one 
to crawl under and look up in the face of the great Sesos- 
tris, as he was also called. That which gives the deepest 
interest to this figure is that it is the statue of the man who 
so greatly oppressed the children of Israel, the father of the 
princess who found Moses, the Pharaoh who "knew not 
Joseph." 

In the Bulak Museum at Cairo is the mummy of this 
same king, which was found in a deep pit near Thebes a 
few years ago. The story of this discovery is like a ro- 
mance. A laborer had been selling some valuable papyrus, 
and it was suspected that he had discovered and was plun- 
dering some royal tombs. He was accordingly arrested and 
kept in prison for two months, when his brother agreed to 
reveal the secret provided they were paid a large reward 
and secured against punishment. This was agreed to, and 
the officers were led to an old well where they found a large 
number of mummies, and among them this one of Rameses 
II. They are supposed to have been hidden there by the 
high-priest at the invasion of Cambyses. 

Nothing that I have seen since I left home impressed me 
so deeply as to look into the face of this man, who had been 
dead for three thousand six hundred years, and try to 
realize that it was the embalmed body of the Pharaoh who 
had looked upon Moses when a babe, and who, before Israel 
became a nation, had " made their lives bitter with hard 



840 Egypt, "The Homestead of Nations* 

bondage." He lies in his richly decorated coffin with the 
original mummy cloths still around his body, each hand hold- 
ing a scepter, and the face well preserved. It is a striking 
countenance, with the high cheek-bones, full lips, and prom- 
inent nose of the Egyptians. It is the face of a man between 
sixty and seventy years old, and the thin, gray hairs upon 
his head also indicate his age. The body is five feet ten 
inches long, and there can be no doubt but that it is the 
mummy of Eameses the Great. The inscription on the 
cover of the coffin so states, but the finders of the bodv were 
not satisfied with this, and, unrolling the cloths, they found 
upon the original sere-cloth, next to the body, an inscription 
in ink by the high-priest, saying that he made the funeral 
oration over Eameses II., whose body was therein inclosed. 
It is the same face that we saw on the statue, and which is 
also to be seen on many of the monuments throughout 
Egypt, for Sesostris was the greatest builder of the Pha- 
raohs, and left his name and face everywhere. 

At Sakkara we visited the Serapeum, or Tombs of the 
Apis Bulls, the largest sarcophagi in the world. Amidst 
all the animals worshiped by the Egyptians — and they wor- 
shiped every animal except the horse — the bull was the 
most sacred. Living, he was daintily fed and devotedly 
worshiped in the Apienni Temple at Memphis ; dying, his 
embalmed body was entombed in a sepulcher as magnificent 
as that of a king, and the walls of his tomb lined with 
votive offerings. We descended into this gigantic mauso- 
leum, and walked, taper in hand, through vast corridors 
hewn in the rock, on either side of which were the chambers 
occupied by the immense granite sarcophagi in which once 
rested the mummies of the sacred bulls. On the surface 
above, a chapel was originally erected in honor of each bull, 
but all traces of these chapels have long since disappeared. 
There are in all sixty-four vaults which are now accessible, 



Sakkdra and the Pyramids. 



341 



and twenty-four of the chambers still contain the huge sar- 
cophagi in which the apis mummies were deposited. By 
means of a ladder we clambered into one of these, and 
found that it measured thirteen feet in length, seven feet 
in breadth, and eleven feet in height, and weighed at least 
sixty-five tons. This immense coffin was made from a single 
block of black granite, and had finely executed hieroglyphic 
inscriptions on its polished exterior. 

We had our first experience with donkey3 on our trip to 
Sakkara. It is about six miles from the station to the Ne- 
cropolis, and when we stopped at the former we were im- 
mediately surrounded by an importunate crowd of not less 
than fifty donkey boys, with their donkeys, each vociferat- 
ing at the top of his voice, and using all his powers of per- 
suasion to induce us to take his animal. I soon chose one, 
and mounted immediately, when they left me and sur- 
rounded the others. After a hard fight, all finally mounted 
and started off, each donkey being attended by a boy to 
urge him along. This donkey-riding is the best way to get 
about in Egypt. It is cheap and exhilarating, and when 
you get tired riding all you have to do is to let your legs 
hang down, and you can walk. The donkey is much abused 
and sadly beaten, but he is indispensable in Eastern life, and 
a good donkey is a very comfortable animal on which to 
ride. He is as easy as a rocking-chair, sure-footed as a 
chamois; he can carry you safely through any crowd, and 
stand patiently dozing in any noisy thoroughfare for hours. 
The fact is that he is the best animal of his size and ap- 
pearance living, and, while not a distinguished success as a 
musician or an orator, he certainly gives forth no uncertain 
sound. Withal, he is as patient as Moses, and as full of 
inertia as a Southern darky in a cotton-field on a July 
day., Each donkey has his attendant, without whose pres- 
ence he soon refuses to move. These donkey-boys are quick- 



342 



Egypt, "The Homestead of Nations" 



wittedj good - natured little vagabonds, and some among 
them are the sharpest characters that we met in Egypt. 

One of the prettiest and most novel sights in Cairo is to 
see a " sais " running before a carriage to clear the way 
through the crowded streets. The finest private equipages 
all have one, and frequently two. They are usually slender, 
black Nubians, dressed in red tarboosh with long tassels, 
silk and gold embroidered vest and jacket, colored girdle 
and short silk trousers ; and with their bare legs, and long 
gold-tipped staff in their hands, they run with jDerfect ease 
and grace, and can endure for hours. They were forcible 
reminders of the forerunner crying, " Prepare ye the way 
of the Lord." 



i Week in feiro and Its Vicinity. 



T^T was a great pleasure when we reached Cairo to find Dr. 
C W. G. Miller, of Little Eock, Ark., with his daughter, 
Miss Minnie, and his son, Dr. W. H. Miller/ awaiting our 
arrival. Three of us had been " keeping house " together 
thus far around the globe, and these dear friends made a 
delightful addition to oar party. We will all now travel 
together, at least as far as Berlin. 

In Cairo, we stopped first at the Grand New Hotel, a 
splendid building, but where there was more style and 
expense than comfort. Dr. Miller had already found a 
pleasant little family hotel, "The Couteret," just opposite 
Shepherd's great caravansary, and thither the second day 
we transferred ourselves and baggage, and had a delightful 
stay of a little more than a week. Stopping at the same 
house were Fred Douglass and his w r hite wife, who had been 
spending a winter on the Nile. We found the old gentle- 
man very polite and genial, but some of our party objected 
too strongly to miscegenation to have any thing to say to 
him. 

We struck the full tide of travel in Egypt, and found 
America largely represented. Some of our American trav- 
elers do not reflect much credit on their country, and their 
"loud" manners and noisy conversation at once fix their 
nationality. Unfortunately, as a country is known in other 
countries only by its exports, the opinion of the world con- 
cerning the United States is made up largely from the 

(343) 



344 Egypt, " The Homestead cf Nations'* 



character and conduct of those of its citizens who travel 
abroad. A celebrated clergyman, a strict moralist, long 
since said that he had found in traveling across the conti- 
nent that one got a tendency to disrobe himself, metaphor- 
ically speaking, of those wrappings which civilization has 
folded about the coarser human instincts. We found this 
tendency constantly manifesting itself among those whom 
we met, and neither the grandeur of the Pyramids nor the 
impressive figure of the Sphinx nor the magnificence of the 
great mosques of Cairo was sufficient to restrain them. 
Many of them knew nothing of Egypt, except the Biblical 
associations, and had no idea whether the Pyramids were 
built by Menes, Moses, or Joseph, while Copts, Greeks, 
Mohammedans, and Eoman Catholics were mixed in their 
minds in inextricable confusion. 

We met two " personally conducted " parties at Cairo — 
one of Cook's and one of Jenkins's. I can imagine no fate 
more miserable than to be tied to one of these personally 
conducted parties. Often inharmonious, the party must stick 
together at all hazards, and they scamper through the East 
and over Europe like a flock of sheep after a leader. They 
are compelled to do so much sight-seeing every day, and the 
" stuffing " process goes on from the time they leave home 
until their return. But we met a number of very pleas- 
ant and intelligent countrymen, representatives of the best 
classes at home, whose acquaintance we shall always remem- 
ber with pleasure. 

When some one asked the Egyptian Minister of Foreign 
Affairs what was the best guide-book of Egypt, his answer 
was, " The Bible." And everywhere in Egypt we found 
ourselves touching Bible history and discovering illustra- 
tions of the sacred text. From Suez to Cairo we passed 
through the land of Goshen and along the track by which 
Israel fled from the country of bondage and oppression. 



A Week in Cairo and Its Vicinity. 345 



As we crossed the desert our thoughts went back thirty- 
five hundred years, and we could almost fancy that we 
saw that moving host as they passed across the very desert 
through which our train was speeding. 

Fifty-nine miles from Suez our train stopped a few mo- 
ments at Rameses, now an insignificant mud village, but the 
site of the Rameses of the Bible, one of the treasure cities 
built by the children of Israel. In the inclosing wall of 
the buried city there have recently been found huge bricks 
of Nile mud, which contain an admixture of chopped straw, 
recalling the command of Pharaoh to the task-masters : " Ye 
shall no more give the people straw to make brick, as here- 
tofore." There is still preserved at Leyden the following 
record on papyrus by an Egyptian official : " Therefore I 
heard the message of the eye (an official title) of my master 
saying, Give coin to the Egyptian soldiers and to the He- 
brews w 7 ho polish stones for the construction of the great 
store-houses in the city of Rameses." 

A little farther on we passed Pithom, another one of these 
treasure cities ; and fifty miles from Cairo we came to the 
ruins of ancient Bubastis, the Pibeseth of Ezekiel. Here 
stood one of the most celebrated temples of Egypt, erected 
to Pasht, the cat or lioness-headed deity, the avenger of 
crimes. She was the Aphrodite of foreigners, the golden 
Cypris. According to Herodotus, all the cats of Egypt 
were embalmed and buried here. 

Thirty miles further we passed near the so-called " Hill 
of the Jews," believed to be the ruins of the city of Orion, 
where Onias, the high-priest of the Jews, aided by Ptolemy, 
Philometer, and Cleopatra, erected a temple modeled after 
Solomon's temple. This Jewish settlement was made upon 
old Egyptian ruins, and in 1871 the remains of a splendid 
temple of the time of Rameses II. w 7 ere discovered. The in- 
terest which attaches to this place and to this remarkable 



346 Egypt, " Hie Homestead of Nations" 



\ 



temple, which Josephus describes, is that when Onias asked 
permission to build it, he urged in his letter to Ptolemy a 
prophecy of Isaiah: "In that day shall there be an altar 
to the Lord in the midst of the land of Egypt, and a pillar 
at the border thereof to the Lord." Ptolemy replied that 
he wondered Onias should desire to build a temple in a place 
so unclean and so full of sacred animals, but since Isaiah 
had foretold it, he had leave to do so. 

The Land of Goshen is still a land of wonderful fertility 
and beauty, surpassing any portion of Egypt that I have 
seen. Everywhere there were irrigating canals, green fields, 
stately date palms, and picturesque groups of natives. The 
villages were collections of miserable mud huts, but we 
passed several large towns, well built and with signs of pros- 
perity and growth. As everywhere throughout the East, 
there are no farm-houses, those who till the soil living in 
little villages for mutual protection. Wheat, cotton, corn, 
barley, sugar-cane, and the oil plants are the principal agri- 
cultural products. The vegetation is marvelously rich and 
beautiful, and one of the charms of the country is its abun- 
dantly stocked gardens and orchards. 

Our first view of the desert was on this ride. Before we 
reached Goshen it stretched out for miles toward the Mo- 
kattam Hills, a dreary waste of drifting sands which was 
the beginning of the Great Arabian Desert. Looking 
across it in the hot sun, we saw a very vivid mirage, and 
could scarcely believe that it was not a beautiful lake on 
which we were gazing. 

Cairo, " The City of Victory/' has a mixed population of 
four hundred thousand, and is the largest city in Africa 
and the second largest in the Turkish Empire. Like all 
Oriental cities, it is full of contrasts, and may be compared 
to a mosaic of the most fantastic description, in which all 
nations, customs, and epochs are represented. It is a town 



A Week in Cairo and Its Vicinity. 



347 



of mediaeval romance projected into a prosaic age. New 
Cairo is a modern city of broad streets, handsome parks and 
palatial houses, but it is to old Cairo that you must go to 
see Egypt as it is. There you find a labyrinth of dark 
lanes and alleys, tall houses with projecting balconies that 
almost meet in the center of the street, long streets of cov- 
ered bazaars, water-carriers, veiled women, calenders, Arme- 
nians, money-changers, barbers — all the dramatispersonnce 
of the Arabian nights. 

A dragoman is indispensable in Cairo, and is one of the 
institutions of the country. The dragoman is your guide, 
protector from beggars, defender from thieves, middle-man, 
courier, interpreter, and— plunderer. But you might as 
well attempt to run an American railroad train without a 
conductor as to "do" Egypt without a dragoman. Our 
dragoman was named Hassan Ali. He could speak nine 
languages, was as dignified as a New York alderman, and 
looked as if he might be the brother of the Sultan. He 
wore a green turban — he had been to Mecca — a cloth coat, 
a bright - colored silk scarf around his waist, baggy silk 
trousers gathered around each ankle, and an enormous 
v/atch and chain. We were all rather awed by his dress 
and dignity, but he was a very good guide after all. 

I took a donkey-ride on the Muski one day, and saw na- 
tive Cairo from the best point of view. The Muski, about 
one mile long, is the chief thoroughfare of Cairo, and pre- 
sents at all times a chaotic, carnival-like scene that is inde- 
scribable. The street is not over twelve feet wide; there 
are no sidewalks, and you force your way through a rav- 
eled and twisted string of men, women, and animals, of 
walkers, riders, and carriages of every description. The 
cries of the street-venders, the shouts of the donkey-boys, 
the jingling of money at the tables of the changers, estab- 
lished at every corner of the street, the braying of the 



348 



Egypt) "The Homestead of Xatiom" 



donkeys, the barking of the dogs, and the noise made by buy- 
ers and sellers as they quarreled over the prices of the wares, 
make such a pandemonium as I have found nowhere else. 
There is perhaps no street in the world which presents such a 
variety of costumes and nationalities, and in which so many 
different languages can be heard. It is the main artery 
from which the bazaars branch off in every direction. 

All the men whom you meet at Cairo, except Europeans, 
wear either a fez or a turban. The fez is a red stiff cap, 
about eight inches high, without any brim, but usually or- 
namented with a tassel. Xo Mohammedan will wear a hat 
with a brim, as in praying, which he does five times a day, 
he must touch his head to the pavement. The turbans are 
of various colors, as from an early period the Arabs have 
distinguished their different sects, families, and dynasties by 
the color of their turbans. The orthodox length of a be- 
liever's turban is seven times that of his head, being equal 
to the whole length of his body, in order that the turban 
may afterward be used as the wearer's winding-sheet, and 
that this circumstance may familiarize him with the thought 
of death. 

The women all wear a peculiar kind of veil called the 
birrko, which consists of two parts, a band about the fore- 
head and a long strip of black muslin covering all the face 
below the eyes and reaching to the waist. These two parts 
are connected by an ornamental cylinder of brass or silver, 
two and a half inches long, and an inch in diameter, Tvhich 
is worn between the eyes. This cylinder between the rest- 
less eyes gives the women an imprisoned, frightened look. 
They wear a long, white mantle over their heads, which 
effectually conceals all of their face except their eyes. As 
I met these veiled and shrouded figures I felt as if I were 
in a masquerade, for the women are the most important por- 
tion of the world, and when we cannot see them it seems 



A Week in Cairo and Its Vicinity. 349 



much like a phantom. But in all Mohammedan countries 
woman is an object of mystery; she is either secluded in the 
harem or veiled on the street, and the most intimate ac- 
quaintance never inquires after the wife of his friend or 
affects to know of her existence. 

The dancing and howling dervishes are among the 
strangest scenes witnessed in Cairo, and all who desire to do 
so can see their performances. These dervishes are monas- 
tic orders among the Mohammedans, and are fanatics of the 
most extreme type. The dancing dervishes perform their 
ZiJcrs on Friday in the chapel of their monastery. A circu- 
lar space twenty feet in diameter is railed off, and the visitors 
gather on the outside of this. The old Sheik comes in 
first, with measured tread, followed by the monks, dressed 
in long cloaks and brown, conical-shaped beaver hats. 
From the galleries there comes a strange, weird kind of 
music, accompanied by one voice in a kind of chant. The 
Sheik seats himself on a carpet on one side of the circle, 
and the others, after making a profound obeisance to him, 
seat themselves around the circle. When the chanting 
ceases they all get up, and, headed by the Sheik, walk three 
times around the circle, bowing low each time they pass the 
carpet, which is toward Mecca. They then resume their 
seats, and, after a low murmured prayer by the Sheik, the 
music is resumed, and each of the monks arises, divests 
himself of his gown — under w 7 hich he wears a long, loose, 
white robe — presents himself to the Sheik, each in his turn 
makes profound obeisance, and begins to turn slowly around 
in a circle. They move noiselessly with closed eyes and out- 
stretched arms, the palm of one hand being turned upward 
and the other downward, and their heads either thrown 
back or leaning on one side. The music gets faster and 
faster, and the dancers move more and more rapidly 
until it makes your head swim to look at them. Their 



350 



Egypt, "The Homestead of Nations" 



skirts stand straight out, and they make from forty to sixty 
gyrations a minute. The day that we were there, there 
were seventeen of them in the Zilcr. It usually occupies 
about an hour, but we left before it was over in order to see 
the howling dervishes, who perform on the same day and 
nearly at the same hour. It was almost a mile to their 
monastery, and we drove at a break-neck speed through 
the streets, our dragoman standing on the box and shouting 
at the top of his voice all the while to men, women, children, 
and donkeys to clear the way. A number of other vehicles 
under whip and spur followed us, bent on the same errand. 
We reached the place at the height of the performance, and 
saw the strangest and most weird specimen of fanaticism I 
have ever witnessed. There were twenty-five bare-headed 
dervishes in a circle on the floor, each uttering a deep, gut- 
tural, canine how], and throwing his head from side to side, 
the long black hair flying and popping like whip-cords. 
There was a low, dirge-like music playing all the while. 
The music ceased and they all stood still for a moment, and 
shouted the Moslem confession of faith in a hoarse howl 
that sounded like the roar of a lion. Then the music began 
again, and they threw 7 their heads to and fro, howling like 
demons all the while, until it seemed as if their heads would 
fly from their shoulders. One poor fellow fell down in a 
kind of fit, but the others went on, becoming more and more 
frantic, until at length they attained the ecstatic condition, 
and dropped down exhausted, and the performance was 
over. 

Another day we made an excursion to Heliopolis, the On 
of Scripture and the Oxford of Old Egypt, where stood the 
great Temple of the Sun. Here the wise studied j)hilosophy 
and logic four thousand years ago, and here Joseph found 
the fair Asenath, the daughter of the High-priest. Here 
Moses and Plato and Herodotus studied, and here the fa- 



A Week in Cairo and its Vicinity. 



351 



bled Phoenix was burned. Near here is the garden of Me- 
tarieh, where grew the celebrated Balm of Gilead presented 
by the Queen of Sheba to Solomon, and brought to Egypt 
by Cleopatra. A corn-field, over which the beautiful ibises 
hover in flocks, now surrounds the solitary obelisk which 
is all that is left of the grandeur of this once classic city„ 

The obelisks of Egypt were originally hewn out of the 
granite quarries of Syene, and are all monoliths, with four 
sides slightly inclined toward each other, and covered with 
hieroglyphics. They did not originally occupy isolated po- 
sitions, but terminated avenues of columns or of statues, or 
stood in pairs before the entrance of the Propylea. The 
obelisk at Heliopolis was erected by Usertesen, 1750 B.C., 
he being generally believed to be the Pharaoh who pro- 
moted Joseph. This monument is sixty-seven feet high, 
and has been called " the father of obelisks," from its great 
age. It is a magnificent shaft, rising in the midst of des- 
olation, and is a fit companion to the Pyramids and the 
Sphinx, which are fifteen miles distant. 

On our return to Cairo, we stopped at a garden where 
we were shown the fountain which refreshed and the tree 
which shaded the Holy Family in their flight to Egypt. 
The tree w T as, however, some dozen centuries too young, and 
the fountain was by no means an ancient one. 

We also visited an ostrich-farm, where there were over 
eight hundred of these gigantic birds, which the owner 
raises for their feathers. The feathers ripen in April, and 
each bird is plucked once a year. The gentlemanly pro- 
prietor explained to us all the mysteries of ostrich-farming, 
and from the roof of his house w 7 e could look over his farm 
and see the different fields in which he keeps his birds, as- 
sorting them according to age and the quality of their feath- 
ers. The males are white and black, and the females brown. 
The average height of the bird is four and a half feet, and 



352 



Egypt, "The Homestead of Nations" 



their average weight two hundred and fifty pounds. They 
have long. legs and rather small bodies in proportion to their 
height, but are by no means so ungainly looking as one 
would imagine. The white ones are very beautiful, and 
some young ten days old goslings which we saw looked like 
young turkeys, and were about the size of a full-grown gob- 
bler. They have voracious appetites, and will eat any 
thing from a sugar plum to a piece of granite. We saw the 
contents of the stomach of one that had died. It weighed 
fifteen pounds, and was composed principally of rock, stones, 
and gravel. Most of the birds are hatched by incubation, 
and a number are kept for breeding purposes only, each 
hen laying between thirty and forty eggs per annum. The 
egg is about four times as large as a goose egg, and it takes 
thirty-nine days for incubation. 



in. 

Tie Religions of Egypt-Alexandria, 



T|JERODOTUS says that the Egyptians were a very re- 
J5j ligious people, excelling all others in the honors paid to 
their gods. We can well believe this, seeing the number 
and grandeur of their temples, but their religion degenerat- 
ed into the basest and most degraded of superstitions. The 
apis and the ibis, the serpent and the crocodile, the beast 
and the domestic animal, were all worshiped. But the origi- 
nal, fundamental doctrine of their religion was the unity of 
Deity. This is shown by the fact that the Pyramids, their 
oldest monuments, are distinguished by the entire absence 
of idolatrous images or inscriptions. The gates, walls, col- 
umns, obelisks, and monuments of the later period are profuse- 
ly decorated with idolatrous sculpture, but the Pyramids have 
nothing of the kind. The tombs and monuments of the 
different epochs show very clearly the growth, or rather the 
degeneracy, of Egyptian theology ; how it departed from the 
primitive conception of one God into the monstrosities of 
polytheism and pantheism. These two extremes are repre- 
sented by the tombs of the fourth and fifth dynas- 
ties at Gizeh and Memphis, on the one hand, w T here all the 
sculptures and paintings represent scenes in the life of the 
deceased, like the remarkable tomb of Fi at Sakkara ; and 
the tombs of the twenty-fourth dynasty at Thebes, on the 
other hand, which are profusely covered with the gods and 
symbols of a gross polytheistic idolatry. 

The idea of a future state was firmly inwrought into the 
23 f353) 



354 Egypt, '-The Homestead of Nations." 

Egyptian mind, and they also had very vivid conceptions 
or the resurrection. They embalmed their dead, and en- 
tombed them in massive sarcophagi and splendid sepul- 
chers, so that when the soul returned it might find the body 
awaiting it. One of the most beautiful and interesting 
things that I saw in the Bulak museum was a little mon- 
ument in basalt, not more than two feet long, which repre- 
sents the soul symbolized by a falcon, standing by the mum- 
my of the body which it once occupied. The little figure 
has the head and feet of a man, and its hands are laid on 
the heart of the embalmed body, while it looks with a wist- 
ful expression into the immobile face. It has come back 
to re-inhabit the body, and is waiting for the resurrection 
power to touch it. 

The Egyptian faith was that, after some thousands of 
years of transmigration, the soul would return to re-occupy 
its old abode. They also believed in retribution and a fut- 
ure judgment, where Osiris, accompanied by the forty-two 
assessors of the dead, occupies the judgment throne. On 
many papyri, and on the walls of tombs, scenes of the final 
judgment are frequently depicted. Horus is seen conduct- 
ing the departed spirits to the regions of Amenti. A mon- 
strous dog, resembling Cerberus, of classic fame, is guardian 
of the judgment hall. The scales of justice stand near the 
gate, and the recorder of human actions stands ready to 
make a record of the sentence passed on each soul. In the 
Ritual of the Dead, which has been preserved, the deceased 
testifies concerning the good which he has done in his life- 
time, and among his declarations occurs this remarkable 
sentence: "I have given food to the hungry, drink to the 
thirsty, and clothes to the naked." 

Since Plato, Pythagoras, and other Greeks studied in 
Egypt, it is probable that many of the mythological ideas 
of the Grecians came from the Valley of the Nile, The 



The Religions of Egypt — Alexandria. 355 



people of India also derived many of their religious ideas 
from the Egyptians, and two of the leading Hindoo emblems, 
the lotus-flower and the ostrich egg, came from this birth- 
place of history and religion. 

Of the ancient religions of Egypt, no vestige remains ex- 
cept the inscriptions on monuments and tombs. Isis and 
Osiris, Ptah and Pasht, Thoth and Ra are all dethroned 
and their temples destroyed, and no man lives to-day who 
is so poor as to do them reverence. 

Mohammedanism is the prevalent religion of modern 
Egypt, and is rapidly extending its sway into the heart of 
Africa. The Moslem creed is embodied in the words: 
" There is no God but God (Allah), and Mohammed is his 
prophet." There are three additional cardinal points 
which the devout Moslem must accept: (1) God and the 
angels; (2) written revelation and the prophets; and (3) 
the resurrection, judgment, eternal life, and predestination, 
w T hich they carry to extreme fatalism. Mohammedanism 
also teaches that on the soul's entrance into the other world 
forty questions are asked, and on the answers given to these 
the future happiness and misery depends. One of these 
questions is whether, in their entire life-time, they have ever 
caused a man to weep. If they have done so, they are 
shut out of Paradise. 

Five times a day the Muezzin's call to prayers is heard, 
and, no matter where he is, the Moslem at once prostrates 
himself and performs his devotions. He is also strictly ob- 
servant of numerous fasts; distributes alms in large pro- 
portion to his means, and is a rigid teetotaler. But while 
Mohammedanism is infinitely superior to Buddhism, Brah- 
manism, or any form of pagan religion, it is as cold as the 
stars, and utterly fails to meet the demands of fallen and 
weary humanity. It teaches no conviction of sin, no sense 
of pardon, no scheme of atonement, no mediatorial plan. 



356 Egypt, "The Homestead of Nations" 



God is awfully distant, and there is neither warmth nor 
vitality in the entire system. The code of morals is a very 
loose one, and the degradation of woman, polygamy, cruel- 
ty, and despotism are the curses of Mohammedanism. It 
teaches a sensual paradise, and the good Moslem's harem 
consists of three hundred houris, all perfect in loveliness. 
In his Paradise is to he found the indulgence of every ap- 
petite and the gratification of every passion. Ko wonder 
with such a creed that Macaulay may truthfully say that 
the worst Christian government is superior to the best Mo- 
hammedan government. 

Mohammedanism is diligent in the work of propagation. 
We went into its great University at Cairo, which is nine 
hundred years old, and saw there " two acres of turbans." 
Eight thousand youths are being trained in that institution 
to go out and jDroclaim Islamism, They were seated on 
mats all over the vast court and adjoining buildings which 
open into it, either conning the Koran aloud, swaying their 
bodies to and fro as they did so, or were gathered around 
some teacher who was instilling into them the creed of the 
prophet. There are in Egypt 1,750,000 Moslems, who pre- 
sent all the evil results of their system, with little admixt- 
ure of its better qualities. 

We visited a number of mosques in Cairo, and found them 
all much alike, differing only in size and the degree of 
splendor with which they were adorned. The finest one is 
the mosque of Mohammed Ali, situated next to the citadel, 
and whose slender minarets- are the most consjncuous ob- 
jects to be seen as you approach Cairo. It is rather Turk- 
ish than Saracenic in its style of architecture, and its vast 
interior, rich in materials and ambitious in designs, is im- 
pressive and striking. The nave is one hundred and fifty 
by one hundred and twenty-six feet, and the floor is cov- 
ered with elegant Turkish rugs. It is built principally of 



27*e Religions of Egypt — Alexandria. 357 

alabaster, though several of the great columns and a por- 
tion of the walls are imitation. The frescoes, ornaments, 
and great chandeliers present a magnificent but rather taw- 
dry appearance, and the whole thing strikes you as gotten 
up largely for effect. Although it was Friday, the Mo- 
hammedan Sunday, when we were there, there were only 
six Arabs in the house. 

From the balcony of the citadel, adjoining the mosque, 
is to be obtained one of the finest views in Egypt. Cairo, 
with its fairy domes, exquisite minarets, tall towers, and 
white houses is at your feet; old Cairo, with the tombs of 
the Caliphs, lies beyond, and a long sweep of the Nile is 
visible, with fields of living green and dark lines of palrns ; 
while beyond, amid the yellow sands and backed by the 
desolate Libyan hills, arise the dreamy Pyramids of Gizeh. 
A belt of green is all around the city, with a belt of sand 
beyond, and the beauty of the scene will linger with one 
forever. 

The Coptic Church is next in importance and strength 
to Mohammedanism. The Moslems are principally the 
Arabs who have overrun the country and crowded the 
ancient Egyptians to the wall, while the Copts are repre- 
sentatives of the original inhabitants of the land. They 
number about 400,000, and are about one-fifth of the pure- 
ly indigenous population of the Valley of the Nile. This 
Church claims descent from St. Mark, as that of Rome does 
from St. Peter. The head of their Church is called the 
Patriarch of Alexandria, and he is selected from amongst 
the monks of St. Anthony, who inhabit a convent in the 
Arabian desert not far from the Red Sea. Their tenets 
strongly resemble the Roman Catholics, though a Wesley- 
an minister in Egypt, with whom I conversed, thought that 
there was a germ of evangelical faith left among them. 
The priests are allowed to marry, though second marriages 



358 



Egypt, li Tlie Homestead of Nations.' 9 



are forbidden. They reject the use of images in their 
churches, but are very proud of their pictures. Their serv- 
ices are read in the obsolete Coptic language, which is sel- 
dom understood by the priests and never by the people. 
The sacrament is administered in both elements, and con- 
fession is encouraged, but not insisted on. They retain 
their turbans, but take off their slippers, on entering the 
house of prayer; they abstain from swine's flesh and ani- 
mals that have not been killed by the knife, and practice 
circumcision. The women pray in a different part of the 
church from the men. They have suffered grievously from 
persecution, and are in many respects superior to their Mo- 
hammedan countrymen. 

We went into the Coptic quarter of Cairo, and in a back 
alley found an old church, dark and dingy, under which 
there was a grotto, where tradition says Joseph and Mary 
abode with the young child during their exile in Egypt. 
It certainly looks old enough to have been the place, and, 
as there is no other rival locality, I know of no reason why 
the claim should not be admitted. 

There is but little mission-work being done in Egypt. 
The American Presbyterians have a mission with seven- 
ty stations and about thirteen hundred communicants. 
The church at Cairo has one hundred and eighty com- 
municants. The Church Missionary Society (Church of 
England) also has an organization and a number of 
schools, but we heard of no other efforts at the evangeliza- 
tion of this people. The TVesleyans have a chaplain in the 
English Army of Occupation, w 7 ho is doing some faithful 
missionary work, but they have not yet projected a well-de- 
fined enterprise, though they are contemplating such a step. 

A few days in Alexandria ended our stay in Egypt. 
Alexandria is a city of 200,000 inhabitants, but more in- 
teresting on account of its past historic associations than 



The Religious of Egypt — Alexandria, 



359 



because of any special attraction that it now presents to 
the traveler. It has been truly said that the ancient city 
" has bequeathed nothing but its ruins and its name " to 
the modern Alexandria. The ancient walls, fifteen miles 
in circumference ; the vast streets through the vista of whose 
marble porticoes the galleys on Lake Mareotis exchanged 
signals with those upon the sea ; the magnificent Temple of 
Serapis on its platform of one hundred steps; the great 
marble Pharos, one of the seven wonders of the world, 
which, though five hundred and fifty feet high, was so con- 
structed that a chariot could be driven up the circular w r ay 
which led to its summit, and whose light could be seen for 
one hundred miles; the famous Museum, founded by Ptol- 
emy Soter, where a society of learned men devoted them- 
selves to philosophical studies, and where the fair and wise 
Hypatia taught — -all these are now gone, and the modern 
city is a poor relic of the once proud and mighty metropo- 
lis. There is little to see in modern Alexandria except the 
people and the dirty bazaars. It is more of a European 
city than Cairo, but lacks many of the interesting features 
of the latter place. Pompey's Pillar, the old fort which the 
English battered down in 1882, the mosque that marks the 
site of the church of St. Mark, the Coptic church and con- 
vent whence the Venetians stole the body of the Saint 
one thousand years ago, and the ruins of Cleopatra's 
baths, about make up the sum of the attractions which 
Alexandria has to offer. Pompey's Pillar, which was not 
Pompey's at all, but was modestly erected by Diocletian in 
his own honor, is a monolith of polished syenite about one 
hundred feet high. It stands on a little mound overlook- 
ing a dreary Mohammedan cemetery, and has been thus 
keeping watch for many centuries. 

This cemetery is the reputed site of the Temple of Sera- 
pis, connected with which w T as the greatest library of antiq- 



SCO 



Egypt, " The Homestead of Nat ions " 



uity, "the assembled souls of all that men hold wise," which 
was unfortunately burned during the siege of the city by 
Ptolemy. Seven hundred years afterward, when this had 
again become the greatest library in the world, it was 
burned by the Caliph Omar, who invaded Egypt and took 
Alexandria after a protracted siege. When he was asked 
why he burned so wonderful a collection of books, the fa- 
natical Moslem answered that if the books agreed with the 
Koran they were not necessary, and that if they disagreed 
they should be burned. They served as fuel for the public 
baths for many months. Omar is said to have placed the 
cemetery on the site of this famous library, so that if any 
of the books should have been buried they could never be 
recovered, as the Mohammedans will not suffer their ceme- 
tery to be desecrated by digging in it. 

It was here at Alexandria that the Septuagint was given 
to the world. Here St. Mark came and preached, and lat- 
er on, Arius and Athanasius held warlike controversy. 
For centuries this was the seat of letters and learning of the 
ancient world, and the Alexandrian school numbered among 
its scholars Strabo and Hipparchus, Archimedes and Eu- 
clid, Eratosthenes and Ptolemachus. Here luxury and lit- 
erature, the Epicurean and the Christian, philosophy and 
commerce once dwelt together. And here Cleopatra rev- 
eled with her Roman conquerors, and fell at last herself a 
victim. 

Alexandria is twice mentioned in the Scriptures. It was 
the city of the eloquent Apollos, and it was in a ship of 
Alexandria that Paul sailed from the island of Melita. 
Christianity was early established here, and even from the 
prejudiced account of the Emperor Hadrian we learn that 
the Christian community was already numerous in the sec- 
ond century. 

We stood one day on the site of Cleopatra's needle — the 



The Religions of Egypt — Alexandria. 361 

one which now stands in Central Park— and looked over 
the bay to the island, three hundred yards distant, where 
the mighty Pharos once reared its head. In the water at 
our feet were the ruins of Cleopatra's famous bath, while to 
our right was still standing an old tower which is said to 
have been a portion of the royal palace. Behind us lay the 
poor remains of the city which Alexander selected as the 
capital of his wide dominions, and which Napoleon pro- 
nounced to be unrivaled in importance. Upon the top of 
the ruined tower sat a veiled woman, all in black, looking 
out over the sea, a fit emblem of the desolation which had 
come to the once proud empire of the Ptolemies. 

I left Egypt with regret. A trip up the Nile was in our 
original programme, and it had been one of my cherished 
plans to see Karnac's "pillared halls," the ruins of hun- 
dred-gated Thebes, and vocal Memnon and his mate, who, 
" with hands resting on their knees, and eyes turned stead- 
ily to the Orient, watch and wait through the circling ages." 
But the season was getting advanced, and now that we were 
so near Palestine, we were anxious to reach there. And so 
one bright afternoon w r e helped to swell the crowd of pas- 
sengers on a little French steamer bound for Joppa, sailing 
for the first time over the fickle and fascinating Mediterra- 
nean, which some one has compared to a woman, all sun- 
shine and tears in a moment. It is certainly a sea of light 
and clouds, of romance and nausea, and, notwithstanding 
all that has been written of it, while w T e w r ere glad to see it, 
we were equally glad to leave it. 



VI. 



PALESTINE, THE HOLY LAND. 




LAND of brooks of water, of fountains, and depths that spring 
out of valleys and hills; a land of wheat, and barley, and 



vines, and fig-trees, and pomegranates; a land of oil olive and hon- 
ey." — Deuteronomy viii. 7, 8. 

We wandered on to many a shrine, 

By faith or ages made divine; 

And then we visited each place 

Where valor's deeds had left a trace; 

Or sought the spots renowned no less 

For Nature's lasting loveliness. —X. E. L. 

(363) 



I. 

Joppa to Jerusalem. 



LITTLE after daylight on Sabbath morning, as I lay 



)/Hl awake in my berth, the engine of the ship suddenly 
stopped its throbbing, and, jumping up, I looked out of my 
port and saw in the gray dawn a rocky eminence rising ab- 
ruptly about one hundred feet out of the sea. It rose, ter- 
race upon terrace, and was covered to its summit with gray 
stone houses, thickly clustered together, while the white surf 
broke at its foot, and the long shore line stretched on either 
side. It was my first view of the Holy Land, and my heart 
was full as I looked upon it and thought that I was soon to 
set foot upon the most sacred soil of earth, 



This was the culmination of my trip, the moment toward 
which I had looked for years, and unutterable thoughts 
crowded upon me of the events which have ruled the world 
from Sinai to Olivet, and from Olivet to Calvary. 

Soon after our ship cast her anchor some little distance 
from the shore, a fleet of half a hundred boats put out from 
the land in a wild race for the steamer, and in a little while 
the deck was full of shouting Arabs, each vociferating at 
the top of his voice, and trying to secure passengers to take 
to land. We had corresponded with Mr. Rolla Floyd, and 
made arrangements for him to conduct our party through 




Those holy fields 



Over whose acres walked those blessed feet 
Which eighteen hundred years ago were nailed 
For our advantage on the bitter cross. 



(365) 



366 



Palestine, the Holy Laud. 



Palestine,* and soon we saw a boat coming with the stars 
and stripes flying from the mast, which we were told was 
Mr. Floyd's boat. It soon came alongside, and a stout, 
cheery-looking man with frowsy, blonde beard and hair 
sprung up the ladder. He looked for all the world like a 
Louisiana cotton-planter, and if I had met him in mid-Af- 
rica I would have known that he was an American. " Is 
this Mr. Floyd?" I asked. " It is/' said he. "Mr. Chap- 
man? Where's your party? Show these men your lug- 
gage." And in a few minutes we were going down the 
ladder. 

The landing at Joppa is one of the worst of any sea-port 
in the world, there being no harbor, but only an open road- 
stead, where there is nearly always a swell. If the weather 
is very rough, it is impossible for passengers to land at all, 
while frequently it is necessary to tie ropes around their 
bodies and lower them into boats. Fortunately, it was com- 
paratively calm the morning we landed, but the swell was 
considerable, nevertheless, and as it dashed the boat against 
the foot of the ladder where we stood, two sailors would 
catch one of us and jump with us into the little craft. As 
we approached the shore, where the surf was roaring like 



* I take great pleasure in recommending Mr. Floyd (whose address 
is Jaffa, Syria) to any parties contemplating a trip through the 
Holy Land. He is an American, has been twenty-five years in Pal- 
estine, knows every foot of the country, is a walking concordance and 
cyclopedia, and is reasonable in his charges. His arrangements are 
much better than those of Thomas Cook & Son, and my experience 
with the latter firm is any thing but pleasant. If I were going to 
take another trip around the world, I would neither buy tickets from 
the Cooks nor have any thing to do with them. In several instances 
I found them very unreliable, and suffered very great annoyance 
and inconvenience through being compelled to put up with arrange- 
ments I had made witli them. I advise all intending travelers to 
have nothing to do with them. 



Joppa to Jerusalem. 



367 



caged lions, we saw a long ledge of gray rocks rising out of 
the water, through which a single fissure about thirty feet 
wide admits the boats into calm water beyond. Tradi- 
tion says that it was to one of these rocks that Andromeda 
was chained, from which she was rescued by Perseus. 

Joppa is at least three thousand years old, and was a port 
of entry in the time of Solomon. Here the cedars of Hi- 
ram, King of Tyre, were landed for the temple, a firman 
having been granted by Cyrus; and from this same tem- 
pestuous port the fleeing Jonah took ship for Tarshish. 
One of our company, who had had some rough experience on 
the fickle Mediterranean, wanted to know if Jonah's will- 
ingness to be thrown overboard did not arise from the fact 
that he had suffered greatly from seasickness during his 
journey. 

It is a much better town than I had expected to see, all 
the houses being of tuft stone, and it has a population of 
tw r enty thousand. The streets within the walls are narrow, 
dirty, and very steep, and there is not one through which a 
wheeled vehicle can pass. All the foreign population live 
without the walls, where the beautiful orange and lemon 
groves encompass the city. As we drove to Mr. Floyd's 
residence — bungalow it would have been called in India — 
the morning air was full of the fragrance of orange-blos- 
soms and the songs of birds, so that we had a sweet wel- 
come to the Holy Land. 

Joppa — or Jaffa, as it is called in Palestine — is famous for 
its orange-gardens, of which there are hundreds of from two 
and a half to six acres each. The trees were laden with 
the golden fruit, which is of large size and delicious flavor. 
Between two and three hundred thousand are annually 
shipped to Mediterranean ports, and the orchards are said 
to net ten per cent, on the investment. These are all 
irrigated by water drawn from wells sunken at convenient 



368 



Palestine, the Holy Land. 



points, none of which are more than twenty or thirty feet 
deep. As Dr. Thompson says, ''The entire plain seems to 
cover a river of vast breadth, percolating through the sand 
en route to the sea." This water is drawn up by Persian 
water-wheels, around the rim of which passes an endless 
belt strung with earthen jars. As these jars are raised full 
they empty their water into a trough at one side, whence it 
is conveyed through a spout into the irrigating channel. 
The wheels are turned by horse-power and are very cum- 
bersome affairs; but all efforts to introduce pumps have 
failed, these people believing that what sufficed for their 
fathers will do for them. 

The only place of interest in Joppa is the reputed house 
of Simon the Tanner, where Peter had his wonderful vision 
of the sheet let down from heaven. The house stands close 
to the sea, and it seems probable that it occupies the site of 
Simon's house. An old well yields a copious supply of wa- 
ter such as would be needed in a tannery, and there are 
some ancient vats which might very well have been used 
for tanning- vats. The roof is flat, as are all the roofs in 
this country, and, ascending to it, we enjoyed a fine view of 
the sea and the rocky coast. 

I used to wonder why Peter went on the roof to pray, 
but now it seems to me a very natural thing. All the roofs 
in the East are flat, and they are used more than any other 
portion of the premises. Women wash clothes on them, 
mechanics ply their trade there, children make it their play- 
ground, and it is the favorite promenade and place of ren- 
dezvous for the whole family in the evening. I have seen 
I\Iohammedans praying there, forcibly recalling this memo- 
rable scene in Joppa. 

Early Monday morning we started in a hack for Jerusa- 
lem, thirty-seven miles distant. There is now a fine car- 
riage road between Joppa and Jerusalem — one of the few 



Joppa to Jerusalem. 



369 



good roads in Palestine, and the only one of any length. 
In the eastern suburbs we passed the traditional house of 
Tabitha, on the site of which a small Mohammedan mosque 
has been erected. We soon entered the beautiful plain of 
Sharon, which is the best cultivated of any portion of Pal- 
estine. There is a Jewish Agricultural College not far 
from Joppa, and improved methods of tilling the soil are 
being introduced. The plain of Sharon reminded me of 
one of the rich rolling prairies of Missouri, and I can pay 
no higher tribute to its beauty and fertility. It is one 
hundred miles in length and fifteen in breadth, and extends 
along the sea-board from Gaza to Mount Carmel, including 
in its boundary the entire territory of the Philistines. It 
has always been noted for its luxuriant fertility and excel- 
lent pasturage; and about three-fourths of it is now culti- 
vated. In every direction is seen the universal beast of 
burden, the patient camel, drawing the plow or bearing some 
load. There are no dwellings or houses of any kind 
outside of the villages. At intervals of every two miles 
through this plain are square watch-towers, erected for sol- 
diers to guard the road. 

There is now no " rose of Sharon," but the beautiful 
blood-red anemone grow 7 s everywhere, while the " lily of the 
valley," seen all along the road-side, is a white flow T er re- 
sembling our lily. It is popularly known as "squills," and 
from it the sirup of squills of commerce is made. Passing 
the round, dome-like tomb of a Mohammedan priest, I no- 
ticed that it was whitewashed, recalling the anathema of 
our Lord when he compared the Pharisees to " whited sep- 
ulchers." 

Twelve miles from Joppa we reached Kamlah, a place 
with 6,000 inhabitants, which is the traditional Arimathea 
where lived Joseph who furnished the tomb for our Saviour. 
Here we ascended a famous old tower, once a part of a 
24 



370 



Palestine, the Iloly Land. 



great mosque which stood here, and had a magnificent view 
which took in many interesting localities. To the north, two 
and a half miles distant, in the midst of an olive-grove, is 
Lydda, where Peter healed the paralytic, and which is the 
reputed birthplace of St. George, the slayer of the dragon, 
and the patron saint of England. Farther distant, toward 
the north and south, stretches the beautiful plain of Sharon ; 
to the west was to be seen the silvery band of the Mediter- 
ranean ; while to the east, in the distance, rose the blue but 
barren mountains of Judea. To the south several cities 
were visible — Gaza, formerly a royal Canaanitish city, 
which Pharaoh, King of Egypt, had taken and given to 
Solomon, his son-in-law, as his daughter's dowry; Gath, the 
birthplace of Goliath ; and Ashdod, the place where the 
Philistines carried the ark of God after its capture, and 
where the great temple of Dagon was. 

A short distance from Eamlah we passed through the 
valley of Ajalon, a green and fertile valley about two miles 
wide by six long, between barren, rocky hills. It is a good 
battle-field, and is the most famous of all the battle-fields 
of earth since Joshua said: " Sun, stand thou still upon 
Gibeon ; and thou, Moon, in the valley of Ajalon." 

We lunched at Latrum, the traditional site of the home 
of the penitent thief. Our dragoman said that there were 
still plenty of thieves there, but he had never heard of 
any of them being penitent. 

Abu Gosh is a small Arab village which is called after a 
robber thief of that name, who was formerly the Sheik of 
the village, and, with his six brothers and eighty-five de- 
scendants, was the terror of the whole country, and especially 
of passing pilgrims. He killed three pashas of Jerusalem 
with his own hand, and was guilty of many other acts of 
bloodshed and crime. The authorities tried in vain for a 
long time to capture him, but at last he was taken and dis- 



Joppa to Jerusalem. 



371 



armed at a feast in Jerusalem, and died shortly afterward. 
This village has been identified as Kirjath-jearim, where 
the ark rested fcr twenty years in the house of Abimelech, 
after it was returned from the land of the Philistines. 

We ride on through scenes rendered memorable by some of 
the most striking events of sacred history, all of which are 
full of thrilling interest. Here is the valley of Elah, where 
David slew Goliath, and there are still a great number of 
" smooth stones " in the brook which runs through the val- 
ley, several of wmich we picked up, trusting that by chance 
Ave might get one of the four which David did not use. 
Yonder, crowning a small eminence, and surrounded on all 
sides by higher hills, is the village of St. John, the reputed 
birthplace of John the Baptist ; and surely the man who 
was a concentrated Voice must have drawn inspiration from 
the scenery with which he w r as familiar in his youth, for a 
more beautiful spot cannot well be imagined. Over there 
on the left, on a commanding elevation, overlooking the 
country for miles in every direction, is Mizpeh, the ancient 
w T atch-tower and home of Samuel, where Saul w r as anointed 
King. And here, nestled in this valley, is the most sacred 
spot of all, Emmaus, where our Lord appeared to the disci- 
ples after his resurrection. Along this very road he jour- 
neyed with the two disciples, and, though not recognizing 
him, their hearts " burned w 7 ithin them " as he " talked by 
the way and opened to them the Scriptures." We feel that 
we are on holy ground, and try to commune with him as 
they did wmile we journey on. 

Along the whole route the hills show evidence of having 
been formerly terraced to their very summits. Some of the 
terraces are still cultivated ; some are neglected, but a very 
little labor would be required to restore them ; while others 
are broken down, the traces of them, however, remaining. 
Everywhere there are cumulative signs that a vast popula- 



372 



Palestine, the Holy Land. 



tion, thrifty and industrious, once occupied this land, and 
the evidences are equally conclusive that it would still sup- 
port such a population, under a good government, with am- 
ple security to life and property. When these terraces were 
all green with vines and olives, and the valleys made to 
smile with rich harvests, it must have been one of the most 
beautiful countries in the world — truly a land that flowed 
with milk and honey. The hoof of the Turkish power is 
said to cause every green thing it touches to wither. If 
the tread of this hoof shall cease to be felt in Palestine and 
a thrifty population should again occupy it, her vineyards 
would bend once more with heavy clusters, her valleys grow 
green again, and her deserts blossom as the rose. 

At last we turn an angle in the road, and the suburbs of 
Jerusalem begin to come in view. We stand up in our 
carriage and strain our eves to catch a first sight of the 
Holy City. A little farther, and there rise the domes 
of the Mosque of Omar and the Church of the Holy Sepul- 
cher, and soon the old gray city, the holiest spot in all the 
earth, with its solid mass of houses and multitude of domes 
and minarets, is before us. It looked just as I had ex- 
pected to see it, and it is the very picture upon which I 
have gazed a hundred times. There it is, " beautiful for 
situation, the joy of the whole earth elevated and yet 
lower than the hills which are u round about it;" a city " set 
on a hill," and yet encircled by a coronet of mountains; the 
home of Melchizedek, the city of David, the place of which 
poets have sung and sages prophesied, the scene of the most 
sacred events of history, and, above all, the spot where our 
blessed Lord walked and talked, suffered and died, rose 
again and ascended. We stop at our hotel just outside the 
Joppa Gate, in full view of the old tower of Hippicus, bet- 
ter known as the Tower of David, which is the only thing 
standing upon which our Lord looked, except a portion of 



Joppa io Jerusalem. 



373 



the ancient wall, and which Titus spared when he so com- 
pletely destroyed the Holy City. 

By far the best portion of Jerusalem now lies without the 
walls. During the last few^ years quite extensive western 
and southern suburbs have been built up, and most of the 
foreign residents now live in this locality. Property has 
risen greatly in value, and choice sites now command a high 
price. Much building is being done, and there is a decided 
air of prosperity in this new quarter of the city. The pop- 
ulation of Jerusalem has always been a disputed question. 
But the best authorities now place it at forty thousand, of 
whom fully fifteen thousand live without the walls. The 
Jews have increased very greatly of late, and are now 
said to number twenty thousand ; the Mohammedans are 
estimated at ten thousand five hundred, and the remainder 
are divided between the various Christian sects, the Greek 
Catholics largely outnumbering all the others, and the 
Protestants not being more than a thousand. 



II. 

Tfe Sty of David. 



li YJW'ALK about Zion, and go round about her; tell the 
towers thereof. Mark ye well her bulwarks." We 
endeavored to literally obey this injunction of the Psalmist. 
Our first excursion was through the city to the Zion Gate, 
and from thence all around the wall on the outside. We 
enter by the Joppa Gate, which is close to the Tower of Da- 
vid, and always the busiest part of the city. The gate 
probably stands just about where it did in our Lord's day, 
in the west walJ of the city, near where the wall turns to 
the north-west, and is about forty feet in length, being a 
right angle, and some sixty feet high. Having passed 
through this gate, we find ourselves in David Street, which 
runs from here to the principal entrance to the Haram, 
this entrance probably being the " Beautiful Gate" of the 
temple. This is a crowded, busy street about twelve feet 
wide, having on both sides, throughout most of its extent, 
rows of shops with almost every ' conceivable article for 
sale. This street descends toward the Tyropean Valley, 
and in many places there are a number of steps down 
which the donkeys, the only vehicles of transportation in 
Jerusalem, carefully pick their way. AVe go down this 
street a short distance until we reach Zion Street, which 
runs straight through the city from north to south, and is 
still narrower and dirtier than David Street. The fact is 
that every street in Jerusalem is narrow and dirty, and the 
city is any thing but inviting in appearance. It must be 
(37-1) 



The City of David, 



375 



remembered that it is very far from being the Jerusalem of 
our Lord's day, and the old streets are buried forty or fifty 
feet below the present surface, the accumulated rubbish of 
centuries being heaped upon them. " No ancient city, not 
excepting Rome itself, has undergone (since the time of 
Christ) so many changes as Jerusalem. Not only houses, 
palaces, temples, have been demolished, rebuilt, and de- 
stroyed anew, but entire hills have been dug down and val- 
leys filled up." The Tyropean Valley, which extends 
through the city, separating Mt. Zion from Mt. Moriah, 
has been filled up to a depth of from sixty to ninety feet. 
When, a few years ago, the builders were seeking a founda- 
tion for the Episcopal Church on Mt. Zion, they were obliged 
to dig fifty feet through the rubbish to reach the rock. In 
one of the excavations, a church was found buried forty feet 
below the present surface. 

Under Hadrian's orders, the ruins of the city which Ti- 
tus had left standing w T ere razed, the site of the temple was 
plowed over, a temple to Jupiter was built on a portion 
of it, and a statue of the Emperor was erected where the 
Holy of Holies had been. Even the name of the city was 
changed to Aelia Capitolina, and it disappeared from his- 
tory for two centuries. 

In fact there are no less than eight Jerusalems lying 
buried one upon another, and the very dust of the city is 
thick with the ashes of a hundred generations. Forty feet 
below the Via Dolorosa are Roman pavements over which 
passed the victorious legions nearly two thousand years 
ago. " How doth the city sit desolate that was full of peo- 
ple! How is she become as a widow! She that was great 
among the nations! " 

Since its first appearance in the annals of history, Jeru- 
salem has been captured and rebuilt no less than twenty- 
one times. At least one-third of these changes, and those the 



376 



Palestine, the Holy Land. 



most radical ones, have taken place since the beginning of 
the Christian era. Its history is strangely blended with 
holiness and crime, with prosperity and desolation, with 
triumph and despair, and no city in all the world has so 
wonderful a record. It has been besieged and conquered 
in turn by Babylonian, Assyrian, and Egyptian, and these 
have been followed by Roman and Saracen, Crusader aud 
Turk, who, one and all, have laid waste the holy city and 
caused it to bleed at every ]3ore. 

As we walked on through the old city, we found nowhere 
a sidewalk or a decent street, while every thing bore the 
usual dirty appearance of an Eastern city. Going out of 
the Zion Gate on the south, we found ourselves on the 
highest summit of Mt. Zion, a space now covered with 
tombs. This was the most ancient portion of Jerusalem, 
and was held by the Jebusites for four hundred years after 
Israel came in possession of the promised land. The capt- 
ure of the citadel which stood here was one of the great- 
est achievements of David's reign, and he erected thereon 
his palace. 

In the time of Israel's greatest prosperity this was 
crowded with Jerusalem's most stately buildings, so that 
the Psalmist might well say, " Beautiful for situation, the 
joy of the whole earth, is Mt. Zion, on the sides of the north, 
the city of the great King." This is all now a scene of 
desolation, except a small portion which is cultivated, thus 
literally fulfilling the prophecy of Micah : " Therefore shall 
Zion for your sake be plowed as a field, and Jerusalem shall 
become heaps, and the mountain of the house as the high 
places of the forest." From this point we looked across 
the valley to Mt. Moriah, and beyond this to the Mount 
of Olives — a long ridge with two depressions, a tower and 
several buildings standing on the highest summit, while its 
slopes are covered with olive-trees. 



The City of David. 



377 



Beginning a little south of the Joppa Gate is the valley 
of Hinnom, which is so wide and deep as to answer the 
purpose of a moat on the western side of the city. Turn- 
ing south, and running along the south wall of the city, it 
is called the valley of Gehenna, and here we are carried 
back to one of the most ancient periods in history. It w T as 
in this valley that the Canaanites worshiped Moloch by 
causing their sons and daughters to pass through the fire. 

After the capture of the city by the Israelites, all the 
offal and refuse w 7 ere cast there and burned, and the con- 
tinually ascending smoke made it a fit representation of the 
place of torment. The Tyropean or Cheese-mongers Valley 
begins on the north side of the city, near the Damascus 
Gate, and runs through the city, separating Mt. Moriah and 
Mt. Zion. It deepens very rapidly as it passes south- 
ward, and at the southern extremity of the temple inclos- 
ure it has a depth of one hundred and fifty feet below the 
summit of Moriah. Here it unites With the valley of Hin- 
nom. The valley of Jehoshaphat runs to the east of 
Mount Moriah, and across this, through w 7 hich flows the 
brook Kedron, rises Mount Olivet. 

Thus originally, before these valleys became so filled up, 
Jerusalem was an almost impregnable fortress, as it could 
only be approached by a steep ascent on every side, except 
along the top of the narrow ridge at the north-west, and 
the top of this ridge was forty feet below the highest ground 
within the city. 

The site of the city is indeed unique. Selected original- 
ly from the strength of its situation only, it offers none of 
the features usually to be found surrounding the metropo- 
lis of a powerful people. No river nor any stream flows 
by it; no fertility surrounds it; no commerce is able to 
approach its walls. It seems to stand apart from the world, 
and, like the high-priest who once ministered in its temple, 



378 



Palestine, the Holy Land. 



it stands solitary and removed from all secular influences. 
Other cities offer gain or pleasure, luxury or glory; Jeru- 
salem has nothing but her imperishable history and her 
mighty memories, while her greatest glory is a riven rock 
and a vacant sepulcher. 

The city is entirely surrounded by a wall, which is from 
forty to fifty feet high, though at the south-east angle of 
the Haram it is ninety feet. It is nine feet thick at its 
base; the parapet is three feet thick, and there are two 
places for lines of soldiers to stand upon, each three feet 
wide. Most of the present walls of Jerusalem are not old- 
er than the sixteenth century, though they are built of the 
old materials of former ancient walls, and most of them 
occupy the same position. The northern wall runs in a 
waving line, and making several angles, for thirteen hun- 
dred yards, nearly three-quarters of a mile. The eastern 
wall is nine hundred and twenty-one yards, or a little more 
than half a mile in length, and runs nearly due north and 
south. The southern wall is very crooked, making a num- 
ber of angles, and is eleven hundred and twenty-seven 
yards long, or about two-thirds of a mile. The western 
w T all runs almost due north, from the south-west corner to 
the moat around David's Tower, near the Joppa Gate, 
nearly three hundred yards. Thence this fortress extends 
one hundred and thirty-three ) T ards to the Joppa Gate. 
This gate is four hundred and fifty-three yards from the 
north-west angle, which makes the western wall eight hun- 
dred and eighty-six yards, or about half a mile in length. 
This makes the entire distance around the wall four thou- 
sand two hundred and sixty-four yards, or a little less than 
two and a half miles. There are four distinct quarters of 
the cjty : — the north-west is the Christian quarter, the south- 
west the Armenian, north-east the Jewish, and south-east 
the Mohammedan. 



The City of David. 



379 



In the south-east corner of the city is the Mosque of 
Omar, or more properly the Dome of the Rock, which un- 
doubtedly occupies the site of Solomon's Temple. The 
plateau in the midst of which it stands is on the summit of 
Moriah, and is called Haram-esh-sherif, or more popularly 
the Haram. This summit was a sharp ridge, which had 
been the threshing-floor of Araunah, the Jebusite, and was 
the traditional scene of the sacrifice of Abraham. David 
purchased it from Araunah at the time of the plague, and 
there made his offering. God selected this summit for the 
site of the temple, but, in order to have sufficient space for 
the courts as well as for the temple proper, Solomon laid the 
foundations of the eastern and western walls on the solid 
rock near the foot of the mountain on each side, and built 
them straight up until their tops were on a level with 
the summit of the mountain. These walls were conse- 
quently very high, and in his explorations Capt. Warren 
sunk one shaft at the north-east corner near St. Stephen's 
Gate, which was one hundred and thirty-two feet deep. 
These shafts were sunk through the debris of ages, and, run- 
ning horizontal shafts, in every case he came to the temple 
walls. These discoveries have justified the declaration of 
Josephus that the eastern wall of the temple was so high 
that it made you dizzy to look down from the summit into 
the Kedron valley. This was the pinnacle of the temple 
from which our Lord was tempted to cast himself down. 
Throned on this height rose the temple, with its glittering 
columns of precious stones and its roof of gold. 

When Solomon had erected those walls he filled up all 
the intervening space and leveled it, so as to form a smooth 
area of thirty-six acres. It is estimated that this filling up 
required not less than seventy million cubic feet of earth. 
In order to avoid filling all this up solidly, stone piers were 
built in the Kedron Valley, over which vaults of masonry 



380 



Palestine, the Holy Land, 



were turned, and others on top of these to the height of one 
hundred and twenty-five feet, while the whole was covered 
with earth and appeared as the rest of the area. This im- 
mense underground space, which we visited, runs along the 
Kedron valley for four hundred yards north and south, and 
is one hundred and fifty yards wide. While this was built 
to save filling up, it is possible that Solomon may have kept 
some of his horses there, for it is said that he had " forty 
thousand stalls of horses for his chariots, and twelve thou- 
sand horsemen. " This whole space, making an irregular 
quadrangle of five hundred and thirty-six yards on the 
west side, five hundred and twelve on the east, three hun- 
dred and forty-eight on the north, and three hundred and 
nine on the south, was inclosed by the walls being run up 
some ten or twelve feet above the level of the inside area, 
so as to form a parapet, which served the purpose of a mil- 
itary defense to the temple. Thus this mountain ridge was 
changed into a level space of thirty-six acres, wherein were 
built the temple and its courts, and the whole mountain 
was encased with a stone wall. This was connected with 
Mt. Zion, the old and populous part of Jerusalem, by two 
magnificent bridges thrown across the Tyropean Valley — 
one at the northern extremity of Mt. Zion, and the other near 
the southern end of the temple area. Both Moslems and 
Jews consider this thirty -six acres the most sacred place in 
the world except Mecca to the former. Here stood the most 
glorious temple ever erected; hither the tribes came up; 
here shone forth the light of the Shekinah ; here the-sacrifices 
of Israel were offered for a thousand years; here David 
sung and Isaiah prophesied and Christ taught; and here 
was the center of the religious, poetical, and political life of 
God's chosen people during all the centuries of their na- 
tional existence. 

Into these sacred precincts burst the army of Titus on 



The City of David. 



381 



that fearful night when the city was taken, when a soldier, 
in violation of the express order of his commander, threw a 
torch into the temple, which caused the captured city, the 
encircling hills, and the sky itself to be suddenly illumined 
by a mighty conflagration. 

Moslem tradition says that when Mohammed comes to 
judge the world, 1$e will sit on this Haram wall overlooking 
the valley of Jehoshaphat, and when a thin cord has been 
stretched across the gulf to Mount Olivet, all who would 
reach Paradise must walk across it. 

Within this area stand the Dome of the Rock, the 
Mosque Aksar, and several small buildings. The first is 
properly known as the Mosque of Omar, but the latter is 
really entitled to the name, as the larger part of it was built 
by that Caliph. The Dome of the Eock is so called because 
just in the center, surrounded by a high latticed in closure, 
a large piece of the native rock juts out. This rock was 
the threshing-floor of Araunah, and probably the altar of 
burnt sacrifice. The surface is fifty-seven by forty-three 
feet, and it protrudes six and one-half feet above the floor. 
The building is a magnificent structure, octagonal in form, 
and surmounted w T ith a dome of great beauty. Each side 
of the octagon is sixty-seven feet long by forty-six feet high, 
while the dome is sixty-five feet in diameter at the base and 
ninety-seven feet from base to apex, the summit being one 
hundred and seventy feet from the ground. The exterior 
of the mosque from twenty feet upward is covered with blue 
and white Persian tiles, making a very fine effect, while 
below it is encased in white marble. The interior is richly 
adorned, and the roof and dome are supported by beautiful 
antique marble columns, all of which were taken from older 
buildings, and some of them undoubtedly came from Solo- 
mon's Temple. The pavement consists of marble mosaic, 
and there are fifty-six beautiful stained glass windows. 



382 



Palestine, the Holy Land. 



Around the whole exterior and over the arches of each 
window are extracts from the Koran. 

At the south-west corner of the area stands the Mosque 
el Aksar, " The Mosque far away " — that is from Mecca — 
part of which was originally a church built by Justinian in 
the sixth century, and called the Church of St. Anne, The 
Caliph Omar added to it and changed it into a mosque. It 
is ninety by sixty yards, and has nothing especially at- 
tractive about it, except its history. There are immense 
vaults under it, and a long, arched passage-way which leads 
to what was evidently the great double gate of the temple 
from the outside. Pillars are still standing, partly built 
into the wall, which doubtless stood in Solomon's day. 
This is one of the most interesting spots around Jerusalem, 
and to it Christian, Jew, and Moslem turn with equal rev- 
erence. Its history is a strange romance, and its fortunes 
have been as varied as marvelous. May the time speedily 
come when it, in common with the other sacred sites of the 
Holy Land, may be rescued from the sacrilegious Turk, 
and made a place of Christian worship! 



III. 

Walks About Jerusalem. 



JilflHE two points of supreme interest to me at Jerusalem 
J® were the Mount of Olives and the Garden of Gethsern- 
ane. One soon loses faith in many of the sacred sites which 
are pointed out, and the circumstantial details tire and dis- 
gust ; but we know that the Mount of Olives is now as it 
was in the days of our Lord, and with it are associated some 
of the tenderest and most precious incidents of the Saviour's 
life. It was his favorite place for retirement and prayer, 
and he spent many nights alone upon its summit, so that 
every foot of its soil is sacred. One of the most pathetic 
passages in the Gospels is where there is a description of a 
busy day which he had spent among the multitude — preach- 
ing, working miracles, speaking parables, and giving words 
of comfort — and, in conclusion, it is said that when night 
came on, "Every man w 7 ent to his own home. But Jesus 
went to the Mount of Olives." Doubtless, he spent that 
night sleeping under one of the old olive-trees, which then 
as now were found everywhere on its sides and summit. 
Instead of being, as I supposed, a single peak, it consists of 
a long ridge running parallel with Mt. Moriah, but con- 
siderably higher, and divided into several eminences by low 
depressions. The highest point is twenty-seven hundred 
and twenty-three feet above the sea-level. 

On the side of the Mount of Olives, to the right of the 
road, just across the brook Kedron, is the Garden of Geth- 
semane. Gethsemane means " the oil-press/' and the origi- 

(383) 



384 



Palestine, the Holy Land. 



nal garden must have covered a much larger space than 
the present inclosure. though I suppose there is little doubt 
but that this was part of the original garden. It is two 
hundred yards long by one hundred and fifty wide; is in- 
closed by a high wall, and planted in flowers and shrub- 
bery. It is the property of the Greek Church, and some 
Greek priests who live there guard it very carefully. But 
that which most interests the Christian are eight gnarled 
old olive-trees which grow within the inclosure, and are 
certainly sufficiently wrinkled and twisted to have stood 
there since the time of our Saviour. 

From the summit of the Mount of Olives the finest view 
of Jerusalem is obtained. The compact city, with its domes 
and flat roofs, lies just at your feet, and every rock and hill 
and valley that is visible bears some name that has become 
sacred to Christian hearts. Between the Mount and the 
city lie the Garden of Gethsemane and the Vale of Je- 
hoshaphat with its brook Kedron, which meets the wa- 
ters of Siloam at the Well of Job. The tombs of the kings, 
of Xehemiah, of Absalom and the Judges are also before 
you ; the caves of the prophets everywhere pierce the rocks 
that have so often resounded to the war-cry of the Chalde- 
an, the Boman, the Saracen, and the Crusader. Beyond 
the city to the south spreads the vale of Bephaim, with 
Bethlehem in the distance, while to the east you can look 
over the mountains of Judea and see the dead, still waters 
that flow above the buried cities of the plain. 

One day we passed around the wall of the city on the 
north side, going by the Damascus Gate ; the Gate of St. 
Stephen, where the reputed stoning of the martyr took place ; 
across the brook Kedron; past the Church of the Virgin, 
where it is claimed the mother of our Lord is buried, and 
which is said to be the oldest Christian church in existence; 
beyond Gethsemane on the right; up the steep ascent along 



Walks About Jerusalem. 



385 



the very route which David took when he fled from his un- 
natural son Absalom and was followed by the cursing Shi- 
mei. Reaching the summit, we visited the Carmelite con- 
vent, which occupies a commanding situation, said to be on 
the spot where Christ taught his disciples the Lord's Prayer 
Around the walls of an arcade, which surround a great 
court, this prayer is written in thirty-four different lan- 
guages. Near by is a magnificent Russian church, which 
is built on the site of an old church of the crusaders. The 
great bell of this church, weighing six tons, was pulled by 
the women of the congregation from Joppa to Jerusalem. 
The wagon on which it rested is shown near the Campanile. 
It looks very much like the Russians were casting longing 
eyes toward Palestine. They are building another fine 
church near the Garden of Gethsemane, and are acquiring 
much valuable property in various portions of Jerusalem. 
The most extensive buildings in the western suburbs are 
their convent, monastery, and church of five domes. 

Riding on over the brow of Olivet, we descended on the 
eastern slope to Bethan} r , the home of Mary and Martha 
and Lazarus, a place full of sacred memories. Here our 
Lord found the one retreat w 7 hich was always open to him, 
and to those warm-hearted, loving friends he always retired 
when wearied and worn out with the world. It is a signfi- 
cant and touching fact that when at Bethany, though only 
two miles distant, he could not see Jerusalem. Bethany is 
now a collection of ruined and deserted houses, only a few 
Arabs living there in abject poverty ; but the red anemone 
grows everywhere on the broken fences and crumbling 
walls, and a sweet peace and calm seems to rest upon the 
whole scene. The sites of the house of Mary and Martha, 
and of that of Simon, the leper, are pointed out, but tradi- 
tion has not located the place where our Lord ascended, 
though, according to Luke, the ascension took place from 



386 



Palestine, the lluly Land. 



Bethany, and not from Olivet, as is generally supposed. 
Leaving Bethany and coming around to the southern 
slope of Olivet, a number of old tombs were pointed out, 
which evidently were the burial-places of Bethany. It is 
very probable that among these was the tomb of Lazarus, 
and we may have stood on the very spot where that wonder- 
ful miracle occurred. Isear this is the supposed site of 
Bethphage, "House of Figs," now a bald, bare spot. It 
was from this place that our Lord sent the disciples for the 
colt, on the occasion of his triumphal entry into Jerusalem. 
A little farther on, we turned a corner of the mountain, and, 
for the first time since leaving Bethany, came in full view r 
of Jerusalem. Tradition says that it was from this spot 
that our Lord, beholding the city, wept over it, uttering 
those pathetic words, " If thou hadst known, even thou, at 
least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy 
peace ! but now they are hid from thine eyes." And then 
he uttered that prophecy concerning the destruction of the 
city which was so literally fulfilled. 

The tomb of the Virgin Mary is at the foot of Olivet, 
fifty yards north-east of Gethsemane. It is strikingly ap- 
propriate that Mary should have been buried so near the 
place where her son, the Saviour of the world, suffered his 
bitter agony. Was not the agony of Gethsemane as great 
as the agony of the cross, and did not our Lord's mental 
sufferings culminate in the garden? 

The tomb of Mary is in a vast grotto, forty-eight stone 
steps leading down into it. The church has a strikingly 
gorgeous combination of chapels, the largest room having 
five hundred silver lamps, which are lighted every morning 
at mass. As in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, there is 
a Greek, a Latin, and an Armenian chapel. 

The entire south-western slope of Olivet is covered with 
Jewish tombs, while the eastern slope of Moriah is full of 



Walks About Jerusalem. 



387 



Mohammedan tombs. Both the Jews and the Mohamme- 
dans believe that the general judgment will take place in 
the valley of Jehoshaphat ; hence the devout of both sects 
desire to be buried there, so as to be " first on the ground/' 
The Church of the Holy Sepulcher is a great mass of 
buildings, rich in ornamentation, fragrant with incense, reso- 
nant with the constant chant of priest and choir, and lighted 
by hundreds of candles, which are kept constantly burning. 
There are no less than a dozen different chapels, belonging 
to Syrians, Copts, Armenians, Greeks, and Latins, while 
the great rotunda of the sepulcher is free to all. In this 
church, or rather congeries of churches, you are shown so 
many sacred things and sacred places that you soon grow 
bewildered and totally incredulous of the whole. The stone 
of anointment, on which the body of Jesus is said to have 
lain when it was anointed by Mcodemus; the spot where 
the women stood and witnessed the anointment; the sep- 
ulcher where the body of our Lord was laid; the stone 
which the angel rolled from the mouth of the sepulcher and 
on which he afterward sat; the tombs of Joseph of Arima- 
thea, of Nicodemus, and of Adam; a fragment of the col- 
umn to which our Lord was bound when scourged; Gol- 
gotha, in which is shown the cleft in the rock ; the stone on 
which the cock stood which crowed when Peter had thrice 
denied his Lord, and many other sacred frauds are exhibit- 
ed with the utmost sincerity, and are believed in by thou- 
sands who visit and kiss them every year. Perhaps the 
most ridiculous story connected with this church is that 
which has been fastened on the chapel of St. Longinus, as it 
is called. The story is that Longinus was the soldier who 
pierced the side of our Saviour; he had been blind in one 
eye, but w r hen some of the water and blood spurted into 
this blind eye, it recovered its sight. He thereupon repent- 
ed and became a Christian, and the Greeks have canonized 



388 



Palestine, tlie Holy Land. 



him and erected this chapel to his honor All Biblical ar- 
chaeologists now agree that this church cannot be upon 
the spot where our Lord was crucified; neither can it 
mark the place of his burial. For it is stated positively 
that he suffered without the gate, and recent explorations 
have made it quite certain that in Christ's time, as now, 
this place was inside the walls. But it is a remarkable 
church for all that, and is invested with very great interest 
as being the most sacred spot in all the world to millions 
of human beings. For sixteen hundred years the Chris- 
tian world accepted this as the place of burial of our Lord, 
and during that time great wars were waged for its posses- 
sion. The object of the Crusaders, which involved Europe 
and the East in war tor a century, was to recover the holy 
sepulcher, which was believed to be within the walls of this 
sanctuary. So that, even as an historical monument, it is 
of the deepest interest and cannot be entered without a feel- 
ing of veneration. But more than this, it has been conse- 
crated by the faith and hope, by the tears and prayers, of 
generations, and I could not restrain a feeling of profound 
reverence as I stood with uncovered head amid the throng 
of kneeling worshipers. Thousands of Boman and Greek 
Catholic pilgrims come here annually and devoutly kiss every 
sacred spot about the church, and then go home to have 
the odor of sanctity about them for the rest of their lives. 

The most remarkable sites are those which illustrate the 
parables. Thus pilgrims are shown the window which was 
the post of observation of Dives, and the stone, now worn by 
the kisses of the faithful, where Lazarus sat when the dog 
licked his sores. 

It is not important to know where Calvary was. As 
I stood on Olivet and looked over the city, I felt every 
nerve in me thrill as I thought that somewhere within the 
range of my vision the cross was reared on which the Sav- 



Walks About Jerusalem, 



389 



iour had died for the sins of the world ; and within the same 
radius was the grave of Joseph of Arimathea, where he was 
laid, and from which he rose from the dead. If the Via 
Dolorosa does not mark the path he trod, it was along some 
of these very streets that he bore his cross to Calvary. 
What matters it whether it was on this square yard or that? 
It is enough for me to know the fact, and to realize that 
I stood near the spot. 

AVithout deeming it a matter of any very great moment, 
I am inclined to think, however, that a round, bare knoll, 
about two hundred yards north of the Damascus Gate, and 
just above the Tyropean Valley, has been correctly fixed 
upon as Golgotha. I believe that General Gordon was the 
first to point out this place, and since then Captain Conder 
and other scientific explorers have come to the same con- 
clusion. It is a small mound, some seventy-five feet across, 
and bears a striking resemblance to a skull. It is on a 
great rock, and there are seams and rifts in this rock that 
might have been caused by the earthquake. The fact that 
this was without the gate, that it was an old execution-place 
of the Jews, that it was near the public road so that those 
who passed by could see and rail at him, that it answers 
every description of the sacred narrative, and that tradition 
has long made the barren tract adjoining it accursed and 
haunted, all seem to point to this as the place where he 
died. I visited the knoll several times, and the conviction 
grew on me that it answered all the conditions better than 
any other spot. 

Another spot that interested me exceedingly, and seemed 
to bear the marks of being genuine, was the judgment hall 
of Pilate, which is now a part of the convent and orphan- 
age of the Sisters of Zion. The old stone arch, called the 
" Ecce Homo arch," which was the entrance to the judg- 
ment hall, is still to be seen in the chapel, and in entering 



390 



Palestine, the Holy Land. 



you pass under it. Its evident antiquity leaves little room 
to doubt its genuineness. There is also in the chapel an 
old stone pulpit, which formerly stood in the street, and 
from which the prophets preached. Down in the vaults, 
under the house, twenty feet below the present streets, there 
is ninety feet of the original pavement of the street, the only 
place in Jerusalem where any portion of it is to be seen. 
These are doubtless the same stones which were pressed by 
the feet of Christ, and it is the very pavement over which 
once rolled the chariots of Pilate and Herod. 

We were amply repaid for an exploration into the great 
quarries under Jerusalem, which were accidentally discov- 
ered by Dr. Barclay, through the agency of his little dog, 
who found an entrance into them. These quarries extend 
for a long distance under the city, and consist of a laby- 
rinth of long, wide corridors, often broadening out into vast 
chambers, which were formed by the native rock being taken 
out for building purposes. These corridors are in many 
places steep and slippery, and often there are great hollows 
excavated, into which there is great danger of falling. 
Everywhere the surface is rough and uneven, while over- 
head there are great masses of superincumbent rock, parts 
of which often give way, sometimes almost blocking the 
passage, so that this excursion was not without its dangers. 
In the walls and overhead the traces of chisels are every- 
where to be seen, and the chips from the hewn rocks lie 
thick under your feet. Here the stones were prepared for 
the great Temple of Solomon, so that they could be put in 
their place without the sound of a hammer. It was a strange 
sensation to be groping about in these old subterranean ex- 
cavations, now as silent and dark as the tomb, but which 
three thousand years ago were so full of the noise and bus- 
tle of masons and workmen ; to find in some places great 
blocks of stone which Solomon's workmen had left, and in 



Walks About Jerusalem. 



C91 



others the trenches on either side of a rock, showing how 
they Were taken up; to thread these gloomy labyrinths 
which had remained unchanged and undiscovered during 
all the storms and wars, the sieges and changes which the 
old city overhead had undergone during the past thirty 
centuries. In one of these underground chambers the first 
Masonic lodge in Jerusalem was organized, and it may have 
been that Solomon and Hiram de Boeuf organized the first 
lodge in the world near the same place. 

The wailing-place of the Jews is in the Jewish quarter, 
on a narrow street, just against the south-west wall of the 
temple. Here, where the original temple wall, for abouttwen- 
ty feet in height, is still standing, the Jews assemble every 
Friday afternoon to mourn over the desecration of their 
holy places. They are not allowed to enter the temple in- 
closure, and so they come as near to it as possible to lament 
for "the city that is fallen." There are always a few there, 
and when we reached the spot there were two women 
standing in the rain, leaning with their faces to the wall, 
wailing and weeping, with every appearance of the deepest 
grief. While we watched, three others came and took the 
same position. The loneliness of the spot, the sadness of 
the mourners, the memories of the ancient glory of Israel, 
the present sad condition of the nation, scattered in every 
land, without a home or country, despised and persecuted, 
the voice of weeping which was sobbed out on that wretched 
day — all combined to make it one of the most touching 
and pathetic pictures I have ever seen. 

I do not believe in the temporal restoration of the Jews. 
I have no idea that they will ever again, as a nation, occu- 
py Jerusalem and Palestine; but I do believe that one day 
they will u look on Him whom they pierced," and be gath- 
ered, as a people, into the faith of the gospel. May God 
hasten that glad day! 



IV. 

kmb, the Jordan, and the Dead $ea. 



§UK first horseback trip in Palestine was " down to Jer- 
icho." Our party consisted of fourteen tourists, one 
dragoman, three Arab muleteers, drivers of pack-mules, etc. 
The Jordan Valley is on the borders of the Bedouin posses- 
sions, and no party can venture there without an escort. 
Not that the escort would be of any account in case of an 
attack — for, as Mark Twain says, if they should attempt to 
fire their pistols, they would not go off until the middle of 
next week — but no Bedouins ever attack a party which has 
an escort, while they are sure to do so to one that is not so 
provided. And as these escorts receive handsome pay for 
their services, it is a kind of blackmail which is levied on 
travelers. The Government farms out this right of escort, 
and for some time past the privilege has been in the hands 
of the Sheik of Abu Dis. Our escort consisted of the young 
son of the Sheik, and two of his followers. The young 
Sheik was a handsome fellow, gorgeously attired, and very 
proud of the responsibility of his position. It is considered 
greater honor for the Sheik to send his son than to go him- 
self, as every hair of the son's head is considered sacred. 

As in our Lord's day, it is still "down to Jericho," the 
road descending four thousand feet in about twenty miles. 
The road, or rather path, is as rough and rocky as can well 
be imagined, leading over steep, precipitous hills through a 
barren, desolate country. It was the wilderness of Judea 
through which we were passing, the same in which John 
(392) 



Jericho, the Jordan, and the Dead Sea. 



393 



the Baptist was trained for his great mission, and where he 
began his ministry. Those same barren rocks had echoed 
to his voice, and along the same rough path we were trav- 
eling, " Jerusalem and all Judea and all the region round 
about Jordan " had hurried with eager feet to be " baptized 
of him in Jordan." It was no road along which our horses 
in single file carefully picked their way, for the only roads 
in Palestine are footpaths worn by the feet of donkeys and 
camels, and flocks, and men, by ages of travel. They were 
never leveled or widened or cleared of rock, but are just as 
nature and the wear of feet have made them. All burdens 
are moved by beast or man, and wheeled vehicles are un- 
known save between Joppa and Jerusalem. 

At noon we stopped for lunch at an old ruined khan, 
where tradition locates the parable of the Good Samaritan. 
The spot is sufficiently wild and dreary to be the haunt of 
robbers, and our experience so far is that thieves are much 
more plentiful in all this country than good Samaritans. 

During the afternoon, in the wildest and most desolate 
part of the road, we came to the brook Cherith, w 7 hich flows 
through a gorge so deep that we could not at first see the 
water, though we could hear it rippling over its stony bed. 
At last we reached a place where we could look down into 
the gorge eight hundred feet deep and three hundred feet 
Wide, and see the leaping brook at the bottom. A narrow 
and precipitous path was to be seen away clow T u near the 
brook, which leads up the valley to a Greek convent. No 
better place of concealment could possibly be found, and 
the ravens such as fed Elijah are still to be seen there. 

Late in the afternoon a magnificent view burst upon us. 
At our feet lay the beautiful plain of the Jordan with its 
covering of green, beyond which were to be seen the blue 
mountains of Moab, while twelve miles to the south gleamed 
the waters of the Dead Sea, blue and beautiful in the dis- 



394 



Palestine, the Holy Land. 



tance. Descending into the plain we found it green and 
fertile, though only a small portion is cultivated, and it is 
a wilderness of thorn-bushes from two to ten feet high. Rid- 
ing through these for about two miles, we came to the fount- 
ain the waters of which Elisha healed. This fountain is a 
perennial one, but the water is not as sweet as we would 
suppose the prophet would have made it. Just back of this 
spring rises a precipitous hill which we ascended, and there 
stood on the site of ancient Jericho. 

Here stood the old Canaanitish city, one mile square, 
the walls of which fell at the sound of the rams' horns, and 
which was the first place captured by the Israelites. After 
its destruction Joshua declared that whoever rebuilt it 
should be accursed ; and, though it was afterward built up 
by Hiel in the reign of Ahab, this curse probably prevent- 
ed it from being inhabited, and it became the abode of the 
poor prophets for whom Elisha healed the waters. It is 
now a barren, desolate spot, and not a trace remains of the 
great city which was once there. 

The third Jericho, which Antony presented to Cleopatra, 
who sold it to Herod, and which that monarch embellished 
with palaces and made his winter residence — the Jericho, of 
our Lord's day — occupied still another site, at the foot of 
the mountains, between the fountain and Wady Kelt. It 
was near here that Elijah was taken up, and it was here 
that our Lord healed blind Bartimeus, and received the 
hospitality of Zaccheus the publican. 

The present Jericho is a miserable Arab village called 
Eriha, built on the site of ancient Gilgal, where the ark 
and tabernacle rested so long after the children of Israel oc- 
cupied the land. Here Samuel judged Israel, and here the 
tribes were wont to gather. Our tents this first night were 
pitched on a little knoll just to the east of Eriha, in the 
same place where Israel camped before Jericho. This was 



Jericho, the Jordan, and the Dead Sea. 395 

the spot where Joshua stood when he saw the captain of the 
Lord's host standing with drawn sword over Jericho, and it 
was in this same place that the first passover in the prom- 
ised land was eaten. Just south of us lay the Valley of 
Achor, where Achan and his family w T ere stoned and burned 
for their trespass. How far distant these events He! • And 
yet that night as I stood under the brilliant sky and thought 
of them, thirty-five hundred years were bridged, and they 
seemed very near and real. 

The next morning, as we rode through the fresh, bracing 
morning air, we looked toward the north, and there through 
the valley, one hundred and ten miles distant, snowy Her- 
mon lifted his head. Then we looked straight ahead across 
the Jordan Valley to the blue mountains of Moab, and 
there was Pisgah, from the summit of which Moses took his 
last view of the promised land. He had probably looked 
over it from those mountains often before, but this was the 
special place from which he took his last look. It was this 
fertile valley through which we were riding which Lot had 
also looked upon as it spread out everywhere before him 
" as the garden of the Lord." In about an hour we reached 
the "outer banks" of the Jordan, and descending a steep 
declivity about fifty feet in height we were " in Jordan," al- 
though it was half a mile to the banks of the stream proper. 
A little further on we descended a second embankment, and 
soon reached the banks confining the water* All the space 
after descending the first embankment is called " in Jordan," 
and when the rains come it frequently overflows. The riv- 
er proper is a turbid, muddy, rapid stream, which runs 
through the valley like a coiling serpent, with a thick growth 
of underbrush and small trees on either bank. It falls from 
five to eleven feet to the mile, although in a few places it has 
a fall of forty feet to the mile. The entire distance from 
the Lake of Galilee to the Dead Sea is sixty-five miles in a 



S96 



Palestine, the Holy Land. 



straight line, but the stream is so crooked that in traversing 
this distance it runs two hundred miles. From the foot of 
Hermon to the Dead Sea, it descends two thousand nine 
hundred and ninety-eight feet, this rapid fall having given 
the river its name. The stream is about the size of Platte 
Eiver, in Platte County, Missouri, and why Watts should 
have written, "On Jordan's stormy banks I stand," of this 
little river which meanders through low plains where ever- 
lasting summer abides is not very evident. 

The place at which we reached the river is called " the 
Fords of Jordan," and is supposed to be the spot where 
John preached and baptized " all Judea and Samaria and 
the region round about," and where our Lord submitted to 
the same rite. The stream at this point is ninety feet wide 
and from four to nine feet deep, and cedars, rushes, and 
other bushes grow along the banks. We went down to the 
water's edge and drank some of it, and then bathed our 
hands and heads, just as John doubtless baptized the people. 
Then our little company gathered on the bank, and turning 
to the third chapter of Matthew, one of the party read it 
aloud, and we tried to picture to ourselves that wonderful 
scene of two thousand years ago, which separated our 
blessed Lord from his quiet life of the past and projected 
him upon his great mission. 

After leaving the Jordan we rode for about an hour 
south through the eastern portion of the Jordan plain to 
the Dead Sea. A little while before reaching the sea, we 
came to some sticky, muddy ground, which in wet weather 
is almost impassable. These were doubtless the slime-pits 
into which the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fell when 
fleeing from Chedorlaomer. At last we reached the head 
of the Dead Sea, which lay before us a calm, lovely sheet 
of blue water, as deceptive as beautiful. I stooped down 
and tasted it, and it was the most nauseous, bitter dose I have 



Jericho, the Jordan, and the Dead Sea. 397 

ever taken, the taste remaining for nearly an hour. The 
sea contains no living thing of any kind. Neither shells 
nor coral exist in it, and sea-fish put into its waters speedily 
die. Not a single boat is now upon this lake, though it was 
navigated in the time of Josephus. When a storm bursts 
over it, according to Lieutenant Lynch, the waves lash the 
sides of boats like hammers; but, owing to the heaviness 
of the water, they speedily subside when the storm is 
over. There is no vegetation of any kind along the shores, 
but the banks slope gradually down into the water, and are 
thickly strewn with the most beautiful pebbles. 

The sea is forty-six miles long, and its greatest width is 
ten miles. It is the lowest body of water in the world, be- 
ing thirteen hundred feet below the level of the sea. Its 
greatest depth is thirteen hundred and ten feet, and 
its mean depth ten hundred and eighty feet. It contains 
fifteen per cent, more salt than the sea, and every gallon 
of the water weighs twelve and one-fourth pounds, and 
contains nearly three and a half pounds of solid matter in 
solution. Of the three and a half pounds held in solution, 
nearly two pounds are chloride of magnesium, nearly one 
pound is chloride of sodium, or common salt, and more than 
one-third of a pound is chloride of calcium. 

The original lake was probably a fresh-water lake, much 
smaller in size, and extended to a peninsula which now juts 
out near its southern end, and extends within two miles of the 
western shore. This lake probably overflowed, which ac- 
counts for the fertility of the valley. When the cities were 
overthrown part of the plain w r as probably submerged, and 
at the same time the character of the water of the lake was 
changed by the obtrusion from below of rocks, salt, and 
other volcanic products. The salt of the Dead Sea has, 
from the earliest times, been collected and brought to the 
Jerusalem market, and is considered particularly strong. 




398 



Palestine, the Holy Land. 



Our road from the Dead Sea to Mar Saba lay through 
the wildest country conceivable. There was not a human 
habitation to be seen, and the road was a tortuous path over 
precipitous mountains and rocks, where the horses could 
with difficulty find a foot-hold. Sometimes the narrow path 
was on the brow of a precipice a thousand feet high, and 
again frightful chasms on either side would cause the bold- 
est of our party to shudder. The rocks and mountains bear 
the marks of great upheavals and convulsions of nature, 
and the peculiar geological formations, cavernous rocks, 
and wilduess of the landscape defy description. Some- 
times the ascent was so steep that we were obliged to cling 
to our horses 7 manes to keep our seats, and we would then 
descend over slippery rocks and by rugged pathways which 
tried our nerves to the utmost. On one of the highest cliffs 
we were pointed out across the Dead Sea, on a kind of shelf 
on the lower slope of the mountains of Moab, the site of Ma- 
chaenes, where John the Baptist was imprisoned and be- 
headed. 

Mar Saba is a Greek monastery, the most celebrated in 
Palestine, and is situated in one of the wildest and most 
desolate places in all Syria. It is built in a kind of amphi- 
theater on the side of a mountain, and towering rocky cliffs 
are all around it. After knocking at a huge gate, we de- 
scended a long flight of steps to a door, and, after gaining 
admittance, descended another flight of steps into a square, 
stone-paved court, into which the buildings of the monastery 
open. Here we were received by some of the monks, who 
conducted us through the queer establishment. This mon- 
astery was founded in the fifth century by Saint Saba, 
concerning whom this story is told: He selected for his res- 
idence a cave, to which one day a lion came with a lame 
paw, which the saint healed. The lion then took up his 
abode with him and lived in an inner cave for five years, 



Jericho, the Jordan, and the Dead Sea. 



399 



passing through the saint's cave to his own. They showed 
us these caves, which are far under the rocky foundations 
of the monastery; and, since we saw the caves and the con- 
necting doors, the story must be true. 

This place is greatly venerated by the Greek Church, 
and is now occupied by about fifty monks, who live in com- 
plete isolation from the world, except the communication 
they have through passing travelers. At one time, as many 
as eighteen thousand monks lived here and in the caves 
and grotteos around. No woman is ever allowed to enter 
the sacred precincts, and through all the centuries of its ex- 
istence this rule has been preserved inviolate. 

The buildings are the strangest and most weird that can 
be imagined, being literally on a series of precipices, with 
labyrinthine passages and ascents which are almost inter- 
minable. Some of the buildings hang over the precipice 
below and are supported by huge flying buttresses, while 
others are built into the solid rock. From an overhang- 
ing balcony I looked down upon the Kedron Valley, five 
hundred and ninety feet below, while on the opposite side 
the cliff rose several hundred feet above us, and in the face 
of this cliff were to be seen the grottos and caves where the 
old monks used to live in the time of Saint Saba. Dr. 
Bartlett compares the queer buildings to "a nest of swal- 
lows in the side of a huge sand-bank, or a wasp's nest glued 
to a rock." 

In one of the chapels we were shown through a grated 
window a great pile of grinning skulls, and w r ere told that 
more than a thousand years ago the convent was robbed 
and sacked by the Persians, and fourteen thousand of the 
monks massacred. Their bones and skulls were put in 
a vast cave back of this chapel, which was itself a cave — 
the one which Saint Saba used. But the most terrible 
feature of the monastery was that there were fifty poor fel- 



400 



Palestine, the Holy Land. 



lows imprisoned in cells in the rocks — monks who had been 
sent there by the Patriarch at Constantinople, some of 
whom were imprisoned for life. In those dark cells they 
are forced to stay without light or fresh air, many of 
them condemned on false accusations. There is no appeal 
or remedy, as the will of the Patriarch is supreme and the 
Sultan supports him in all his acts. As we thought of 
these desolate prisoners, many of whom were perhaps there 
under false accusations, some of our party declared that the 
Persians came a thousand years too soon, and Dr. Miller 
was especially indignant. As we rode away from the queer 
old buildings, looking so desolate and forbidding from their 
lofty perch on the side of the mountain, we thought how 
strange it was that those who lived in the land of our Lord 
should so sadly pervert his teachings and so misconceive 
the spirit of the gospel. 



V. 

Bethlehem. 



BETHLEHEM, the city of David and of David's greater 
son, is beautifully and picturesquely situated on a 
swell of the ridge with a steep declivity on three sides. 
Approaching from the east the white houses clustered on 
the summit and sides of the hill are visible for a long dis- 
tance. The hill is terraced from the valley to the summit, 
and the w T alls protecting these terraces, about fifteen feet 
apart and winding in and out along the mountain-sides, are 
from five to fifteen feet high. The intervals between the 
walls and the terraces are planted with olive-trees and 
grapes, giving an exceedingly picturesque appearance to 
the landscape, while rich corn-fields are in the valleys below. 
The soil is fertile and the fields around Bethlehem are well 
tilled, while the people appear industrious and prosperous. 

Just before reaching Bethlehem we passed through the 
fields of Boaz, where Ruth gleaned after the reapers. The 
beautiful and touching story of womanly devotion and 
modesty has consecrated the fertile field, and it was not 
difficult to restore the scene of three thousand years before. 
That beautiful idyl of the book of Ruth, w 7 hich forms an 
introduction to the history of David, has become a classic 
for all time, and Ruth and Naomi will live as long as the 
stars shine on the slopes of Bethlehem. The field is still 
planted in wheat and is apparently part of a fruitful farm. 

Near this field is pointed out the hill-side where the shep- 
herds were watching their sheep nearly two thousand years 
26 (401) 



402 



Palestine, the Holy Land. 



ago, when the Judean air was suddenly laden with melody 
such as earth never heard before, and the first song of 
redemption broke the midnight stillness. These very peaks 
echoed the angelic shout of " Glory to God in the highest, 
and on earth peace, good-will toward men." 

Over these same fields and hills David wandered when a 
young lad, after his father's sheep, and we passed just such 
a barefooted shepherd boy lying under the shade of a tree, 
while his sheep and goats grazed near by; for the youth 
of Bethlehem still lead the flock to pasture, just as the sons 
of Jesse did in the far-distant past. Bethlehem is one of 
the most beautiful regions in all the hill country of Judea, 
and the scenes with which it is associated have invested it 
with a halo which grows but the brighter as the centuries 
pass. These rocks and fields and hills shall be holy ground 
as long as the sun shines and the rivers run into the sea. 

Bethlehem is one of the best-built towns in Palestine, 
although, like all Oriental towns, the streets are narrow and 
dirty, as well as steep and rocky. It has about five thou- 
sand inhabitants, of whom three hundred are Moslems, 
and fifty Protestants, the remainder being Latins, Greeks, 
and Armenians. The place has always been noted for its 
-ruddy, stalwart men and beautiful women and children, 
though the beauty of the women I saw was by no means 
remarkable; nor did I see a single countenance that indi- 
cated Jewish blood. But how full of thrilling interest was 
this quiet old town and its inhabitants! Here began that 
life which " lifted empires off their hinges and turned the 
stream of centuries out of its course, and still governs the 
ages " — a life which has revolutionized the world and trans- 
formed humanity. No wonder that the very donkeys as- 
sumed an additional interest, while the camels seemed as if 
they had just come from the East with gifts, and the palm- 
tree offered its branches to strew the holy ground. The 



Bethlehem. 



403 



lowing cattle might have descended from those who stood 
around the lowly manger of the infant Redeemer, and 
every shepherd appeared to have a mystic character. 

The name of Bethlehem, " House of Bread," is probably 
derived from the fact that the region about Bethlehem has 
from very remote antiquity presented a marked contrast 
to the surrounding " wilderness." It has always been a 
particularly fertile section, and since the days of David 
its inhabitants have possessed corn-fields, vineyards, olive- 
orchards, and flocks of sheep and goats. It is probable 
that the family of David always retained a title in their 
inheritance, and that when Joseph and Mary came here to 
be taxed they came to the very inn in which they owned a 
share. 

We reached Bethlehem about noon, and lunched in the 
refectory of the Latin convent, which is a part of the 
Church of the Nativity. Of course this Church of the Na- 
tivity is the point of supreme interest in Bethlehem ; and, 
while w 7 e may not be sure that it covers the exact spot 
where our Lord was born, there is no doubt that the Beth- 
lehem of to-day is identical, as to locality, with ancient 
Bethlehem, and it is at least possible that this church is 
built upon the scene of the nativity. The oldest part of the 
structure is said to have been erected by Constantine in 
330. Justin Martyr, who was born in Nablous in the sec- 
ond century, and educated in other portions of Palestine, 
says that Jesus was born in a grotto at Bethlehem, such as 
is pointed out in this church. And Jerome believed so 
fully in this location that he came to Bethlehem to live in 
a cave, that he might be near the birthplace of our Lord. 
There for many years he spent his time in studying and 
translating the Scriptures, giving the result to the w 7 orld in 
the Vulgate. He died there September 30, 420, and w r e 
visited his cave and tomb. 



404 



Palestine, the Holy Land. 



The Church of the Nativity is a huge pile, embracing 
three convents and three chapels — Latin, Greek and Ar- 
menian. It is built over vast caves or sub-structures nearly 
as extensive as the church itself. It is impossible to give 
an extended description of the building, the most magnifi- 
cent portion of which is the Latin Church built in 1869 by 
the Emperor of Austria. As in the Church of the Bepul- 
cher in Jerusalem, there are innumerable legends locating 
the precise spot where every event connected with the birth 
of our Lord occurred. They point out the exact place 
where the manger stood in which the infant Saviour was 
laid ; the grotto where he was born ; the precise spot where 
the angel appeared to Joseph to command the flight into 
Egypt; the place where the virgin and child were con- 
cealed during the period of preparation ; and many other 
spots considered equally sacred by the credulous populace. 
In the subterranean grotto where it is claimed that Christ 
was born, twenty-four silver lamps, suspended from the ceil- 
ing, are kept always burning, and a silver star is over the 
spot where Mary nursed the Saviour. A Turkish guard 
stood just without the grotto, and one is always kept there 
to quell any disturbances that may arise between the rival 
religious factions. In 1874 a fight between the Greeks and 
Latins occurred around this grotto, and the whole place 
was torn up, while the church came near being destroyed. 
It is humiliating and sad beyond expression that a place 
considered the holiest on earth should be thus desecrated 
by the contentions of those who profess to love and serve 
the same Saviour. 

Notwithstanding the uncertainty of this being the actual 
place of the nativity, one cannot with indifference behold a 
spot that during nearly eighteen hundred years has been sa- 
cred to millions of pilgrims and devotees. Men have trav- 
ersed seas and continents, in rags and in armor, to worship 



Bethlehem. 



405 



here during all these centuries; and whether or not it be 
the actual birthplace of our Lord, it is so considered by the 
great body of the Christian Church, and no other place has 
rival claims. Hence it was to me a sacred and hallowed 
spot, and I felt subdued and reverent while standing there. 

Not far from the church, we visited an inn the first 
story of which was occupied by the cattle, while the guest- 
chambers were above. Such inns, or khans, are very com- 
mon throughout Palestine, and are just as they were in our 
Lord's day. It was in the manger of a similar inn that Mary 
brought forth her first-born. 

We rode two miles south-west of Bethlehem, on the He- 
bron road, to visit Solomon's pools. The road leads through 
a wild and rocky tract, thickly strewn with great bowlders. 
It has been a highway since the days of Abraham. The 
broken pavement over which chariots once ran still re- 
mains, though in many places it is impassable, and we were 
frequently compelled to ride in a path that runs beside it. 
The rocks are smooth and slippery, and sometimes the path 
is narrowed between blocks of stone covered with tangled 
roots, or seamed by wide fissures. But we at length reached 
the pools, which are three large reservoirs formerly used 
to store water for irrigating purposes, and also for supply- 
ing Jerusalem w r ith fresh water; though the aqueducts are 
not from the pools but from the fountains, and these same 
aqueducts, built by Solomon, still furnish water to the tem- 
ple inclosure, coming out at the Brazen Sea, w^hich stands 
in front of the Dome of the Rock. Solomon had extensive 
gardens and a summer palace here at Etam, which, by the 
way, was the place where Samson slew one thousand Philis- 
tines w'ith the jaw-bone of an ass. Josephus speaks of 
Solomon taking a morning ride out to these gardens, which 
are about ten miles from Jerusalem. These are the gar- 
dens and the pools to which Solomon refers when he says : 



406 Jericho, the Jordan, and the Dead Sea. 



" I made me gardens and orchards, and I planted trees in 
them of all kinds of fruits ; I made me pools of water, to 
water therewith the wood that bringeth forth trees." All 
traces of the gardens and orchards have long since disap- 
peared, but the pools are still intact, and are as fine reser- 
voirs as when the wise king built them. 

The uppermost of these pools is three hundred and eight}' 
feet long, two hundred and thirty feet wide, and tw^enty- 
five feet deep. It is dug down into the solid rock, and is 
walled up and cemented, with steps leading down to the 
bottom. The second pool, fifty yards farther down the val- 
ley, is four hundred and twenty-three feet long, with an 
average width of two hundred feet, and a depth of thirty- 
nine feet. The lowest and largest pool, still fifty yards be- 
low, is five hundred and eighty-two feet long, one hundred 
and forty-eight feet wide at the upper end and two hundred 
and seven feet wide at the low T er end, and fifty feet deep. 
This pool, when fall, would float the largest man-of-war 
that ever sailed. There was water in all these pools, though 
they are not now utilized for any purpose. The source of 
supply for the pools is a fountain two hundred and twen- 
ty yards north-west of the uppermost pool. This fountain 
is in an underground chamber, forty-one feet long and twelve 
feet wide, in the middle of which the water is collected from 
two spring-heads, where it gushes up in two of the most 
beautiful fountains I have ever seen. The water flows 
through arched passages to the pools, just as it has been 
doing for three thousand years, and these same springs sup- 
ply the aqueducts which carry the v^ater to Jerusalem. 

We rode back to Jerusalem in the early twilight, and 
the scene and ride will never be forgotten. The departed 
sun had left a radiant after-glow which transfigured hill 
and field and city and mountain, and made the scene like 
a vision of Paradise. To the left stretched green wheat- 



Bethlehem. 



407 



fields, the most beautiful we had seen in Palestine, and be- 
yond them lay the gently sloping hills of Judea. High 
over the city to the right rose the Mount of Olives, upon 
which the purple light rested like a halo. Back of this 
were the hills of Moab, almost mingling with the sky and 
affording a background to the striking picture, while im- 
mediately in front was the wavy, battlemented wall, be- 
yond which rose the towers and minarets and swelling 
domes and terraced roofs of the Holy City. The light 
faded as we came nearer the city, and in the growing dark- 
ness we crossed the bridge which spans the valley of J3re- 
henna, looking down into the murky depths from which in 
the far-distant past the smoke from the horrible Moloch 
sacrifices arose. Then skirting around the wall which rose 
far above us on Mt. Zion, we soon reached the Tower of 
David and the Joppa Gate, and were at our hotel. 



VI. 

Prom Jerusalem to Dotta. 



n^HE traveler in Palestine who expects to find many re- 
1- mains of the cities and towns which once filled the 
land will be sadly disappointed, for the deep interest attach- 
ing to this country lies in what it was, not what it is. 
Many of the sacred localities are now but heaps of rub- 
bish, and in other places miserable Arab villages occupy 
sites consecrated by the most hallowed associations. The 
country is desolate and cursed, and the maledictions of 
heaven seem to rest upon it. Comparatively a small por- 
tion of it is under cultivation, and there are not a dozen 
good towns throughout its entire extent. And yet, for all 
that, it is the most deeply interesting country in all the 
world, and every foot of its soil is sacred. 

After resting several days at Jerusalem on our return 
from the Dead Sea and Bethlehem, we started on Wednes- 
day morning on our long ride through Judea, Galilee, and 
Samaria to Cesarea Philippi, on the northern limits of the 
land, and thence to Damascus and Baalbec. Our party 
numbered nineteen, among whom were six ministers and 
seven ladies. AVe were all mounted on horses except Mr. 
Ward, of Boston, who, with his wife and daughter, was in 
the party. He is an invalid, and accordingly there was 
fitted up for him a palanquin, swung between two mules. 
The bridle-paths in Palestine being too narrow for the mules 
to go abreast, one of the mules was harnessed in front, while 
the other came behind. The palanquin was awkward and 



From Jerusalem to Dothan. 



409 



unwieldy, besides being dangerous when a sharp curve was 
to be made, but Mr. Ward said it was comfortable, and 
rode in state near the middle of the caravan. 

Our first halt, soon after leaving the city, was on the 
summit of Mt. Scopus, memorable as the camping-place of 
Titus during the fatal siege which terminated in the de- 
struction of Jerusalem. Here the Roman General could 
look over the city, and here he w r as asleep w T hen a soldier, 
contrary to his command, threw a torch into the temple and 
set it on fire. We sat silent in our saddles for some min- 
utes, taking our last view of the Holy City, our minds full 
of the memories of the past, and of the thousand associa- 
tions w 7 hich clustered around the sacred localities before 
us. It is said that when the crusading army, thinned by 
pestilence, privation, and many a battle-field, gazed upon 
the city first from this point, the warrior-host knelt dow r n 
as a single man ; sobs burst from their mailed bosoms, and 
tears streamed down their rugged cheeks. 

Of earth's dark circlet, once the precious gem 
Of living light — O fallen Jerusalem! 

At last we turned our horses' heads and started on our 
northward march, but I shall never forget Jerusalem as I 
saw it that morning, bathed in the early sun, and glorified 
in the clear light. 

Our march is slow T , but there is so much the better oppor- 
tunity for seeing and studying the sacred localities and the 
topography of the country. A mountain ridge runs through 
the center of Palestine, forming the backbone of the coun- 
try, and this is pierced by innumerable ravines, through 
which flow T the mountain torrents into the valley of the Jor- 
dan on the one side and the Mediterranean on the other. 
The hill-sides are covered with bare rocks, whose nakedness 
is in many places hidden by innumerable w r ild flowers of rare 
beauty, which are found everywhere throughout Palestine. 



410 



Palestine, the Holy Land. 



But this country, with all its present barrenness, is clothed 
by its associations with an inexpressible charm, more at- 
tractive than the most sublime scenery or the most luxu- 
riant vegetation. Renan has well called it "The Fifth 
Gospel," and every barren rock and rugged hill and fertile 
valley is rich in the most hallowed memories, which fill the 
air as with the presence of archangels. The common dust 
of the Holy Land cannot obscure the heavenly visions, and 
to the Christian pilgrim the squalor and dirt of the Arab 
villages, the offensive Turkish rule, the Bedouins and the 
beggars, are all lost sight of in the fact that he is in the 
land which witnessed Israel's glory, where God spoke and 
prophets thundered, where the most stupendous events of 
history occurred, and where lived and walked, and suffered 
and died, and rose again, the only perfect life that ever ap- 
peared on earth. God in history is seen everywhere in Pal- 
estine, and that soul is dead indeed which is not profoundly 
stirred as it looks upon Jerusalem and Bethlehem, Shechem 
and Nazareth, the Mount of Beatitudes and the Lake of 
Galilee, solemn* Tabor, and the glory of Hermon and of 
Lebanon. 

Palestine is only forty miles wide and one hundred and 
forty miles long — but a little larger than some counties in 
Missouri — and has a present population of three hundred 
thousand. As the Jews were separated from other nations, 
so this country is remarkably separated by mountains and 
deserts from all other countries. It is pushed forward, as 
it were, on the extreme western edge of the East, and seems 
almost to have been rejected by Asia,* from which it is cut 
off by deserts. It stands on the shore of the Mediterranean 
"as if it had advanced as far as possible toward the west, 
toward that New World which, in the fullness of time, it 
was so mightily to affect." It forms a bridge between the 
great valleys of the Nile and of the Euphrates, and over it 



From Jerusalem to Dothan. 



411 



trampled the armies of Egypt and Assyria, and flowed the 
advancing and receding waves of civilization and progress 
in the historic epochs of the past. And now, as the great- 
ness of Babylon and Nineveh has departed, while Egypt is 
but a vast Necropolis, so Ichabod is written all over this 
land once so favored and so blest. 

On this first day's journey we passed many places whose 
names are familiar in Old Testament history. A round 
hill on our right, covered with ruins, is pointed out as Nob, 
where David, when hungered, ate the shew-bread. Gibeah 
and Gibeon, Rock Gibbon and Beeroth, call up momentous 
events in the history of Israel; and as we pass through Ra- 
mah we seem to hear the voice of the prophet saying, " In 
Ramah was there heard a voice of lamentation and weep- 
ing, Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be 
comforted because they are not." And we note that Ramah 
was near enough to Gibeah for the voice of lamentation to 
be heard when that terrible retributive massacre took place. 
As we think of that most touching instance of maternal 
love on record, when through the w T eary days and nights 
the broken-hearted Rizpah watched the unburied bodies of 
her sons, we tread lightly, for it is holy ground. 

Our road leads over a rough, barren country, covered 
with great bowlders, and with no attempt at cultivation. 
There are traces of an old paved Roman road, and we are 
on one of the principal thoroughfares of Palestine. We 
meet many caravans — long lines of heavily laden camels, 
all in single file. These patient animals carry enormous 
loads, and constitute, with the women and donkeys, the bur- 
den-bearers, freight-trains, and express companies of the 
country. Companies of pilgrims on foot are also met, and 
it is easy to see how the young twelve-year-old lad might 
have been lost from such a company, for they are strung 
along the read in single file, and those in front know little 



412 



Palestine, the Holy Land. 



of what is going on behind. Tradition makes Beeroth, 
where we lunched, the place where the parents of our Lord 
missed him as they were returning from Jerusalem. 

Early in the afternoon we reached Bethel, one of the most 
memorable places in sacred history. Here Abraham pitched 
his tent when he first came into the promised land. Here 
Jacob saw the vision of the ladder — a dream which Dean 
Stanley thinks was suggested by the rocky ledges which are 
on all sides of the hill. Tradition says that the stone 
on which Jacob rested his head was carried to Ireland, 
and was for many centuries the stone upon which the 
Kings of Ireland sat when they were crowned. It was 
brought to England by Edward L in 1296, and placed un- 
der the coronation chair in Westminster Abbey, and since 
that time all the English sovereigns, twenty-five in number, 
have been crowned over that same stone. 

A wretched Arab village of about five hundred inhab- 
itants now occupies the site of Bethel, but we think not of 
this as we remember that this very ground has been touched 
by angels' feet, and that as the patriarch rested his weary 
head on one of these stones, he saw the ladder whose top 
reached to heaven, and down which came trooping the 
heavenly visitants. 

How my heart w T as stirred as early the next morning Mr. 
Floyd pointed to a hill on w T hich are only the ruins of an 
old Crusader church, and said, " That is Shiloh ! " A bar- 
ren, rocky plain lies all around the hill, and, as I looked 
upon the scene of desolation I seemed to hear the voice of 
the stern old prophet saying: " But go ye now unto my 
place which was in Shiloh, w T here I set my name at the 
first, and see what I did to it for the wickedness cf my peo- 
ple Israel." This uninhabited and deserted spot was for 
many centuries the center of the Jewish national and relig- 
ious life, for here the ark and tabernacle were set up be- 



From Jerusalem to Doilian. 



413 



fore the temple was built, and thither the tribes repaired, 
as they afterward did to Jerusalem. Forty years Eli here 
judged Israel, and, when nearly ninety years old, fell dead 
when he heard of the ark of God being taken and of the 
death of his sons. We are full of thoughts of this pathetic 
and touching incident, of Samuel and of Hannah, and of 
the earlier history of this place where the sons of Benjamin 
stole their wives at the dances, as we ride on past the ruins 
of modern Shiloh, a few hundred yards to the west, which 
is likewise without an inhabitant. 

The steep, rocky hills between Shiloh and the plain of 
Moreh, over which our route lay, were in many cases cov- 
ered with great, smooth bowlders, which made it exceed- 
ingly difficult for the horses to retain their footing. Several 
of them slipped and fell, my own among the number, but 
we all escaped without injury, and were soon cantering 
over the beautiful plain, which stretches out for several 
miles, green and fertile, inclosed on either side by mount- 
ains which narrowed as we approached Kablous, culminat- 
ing in Gerizim on the one side and Ebal on the other. It 
was in this plain that the Lord appeared to Abraham, and 
w T here he erected his first altar, and we journeyed along 
the same road which Joseph traveled when he searched for 
his brethren. Through this green valley the twelve sons of 
Jacob had often led their flocks, and w r e doubtless passed 
through the very field where the sheaves made obeisance to 
the one which represented Joseph. 

Just before entering the narrow valley where was situated 
old Shechem, and where is now the modern city of Nablous, 
we came to Jacob's well. This well, with about five acres 
of ground, has been purchased by the Greeks, who have 
erected a wall around the ground, and admittance is only 
gained through the carefully kept locked gate, on the pay- 
ment of backshish. Entering the inclosure, we found the 



414 



Palestine, the Holy Land, 



entrance to the well to be six feet below the level of the rub- 
bish and dirt which had accumulated. A small space 
around the mouth has been cleared away, and into this we 
clambered and found ourselves upon the rim of the round 
well, so full of historic and sacred memories, which was dug 
by our father Jacob himself, upon the parcel of ground 
bought from the children of Hamor, and where, seventeen 
hundred years later, Jesus sat and talked to the woman of 
Samaria. The well is about twelve feet in circumference, 
and seventy feet deep, but contains no water. We dropped 
in pieces of lighted paper, and saw 7 the old curbed sides and 
stone-paved bottom. 

This is one of the few places in Palestine concerning 
whose identity there is no dispute. Our Lord recognized it 
and came to it as to a hallowed spot, and his presence and 
discourse have made it one of the most sacred places in all 
the land. Here he revealed to the astonished woman of 
Samaria that the true worship of God depends not on the 
place but on the worshiper ; that " neither in this mountain,'' 
(Gerizim) "nor yet at Jerusalem," shall men " worship the 
Father," but " God is a spirit, and they that worship him 
must worship him in spirit and in truth." 

A few hundred yards to the north of Jacob's well is Jo- 
seph's tomb. When Joseph was about to die, amid all the 
splendor of the Egyptian court, his thoughts went back to 
the scenes of his boyhood, and to the plot of ground which 
his father had given him as a token of his parental love. 
And desiring to be buried near where his childhood days 
had been spent, he took an oath of his brethren that when 
God should restore unto them the land of their fathers, they 
should carry up his bones with them. The pledge was re- 
membered, and when the exodus came his embalmed body 
was taken with them out of the land of Egypt, and laid 
finally to rest in this same historic parcel of ground. The 



From Jerusalem to Dothan. 



415 



tomb is a small, square, modern structure of brick and plaster, 
which undoubtedly occupies the site of the ancient sepul- 
cher. A tablet informs the public that it was restored by 
Mr. E. T. Eogers, H. B. M. Consul, in January, 1868. It 
wears a neglected, deserted air, and seems to be used by 
some farmer for his agricultural warehouse, as there were 
a number of plows in it. The tomb itself, inside this small 
building, is a round, coffin-shaped sarcophagus of brick and 
plaster, at the head and foot of which are two pillars of 
black granite. Ebal and Gerizim stand like giant sentinels 
near the tomb, and all the surrounding scenes are full of 
the most thrilling historic interest. 

Nablous, the second city of Palestine, with a population 
of thirteen thousand, occupies the site of ancient Sychem or 
Shechem, and of the Roman Neapolis. It is eighteen hun- 
dred and seventy feet above sea level, and lies in a long line 
on the floor of the valley between Ebal and Gerizim. It 
is a place of considerable commercial importance, and car- 
ries on quite a trade in wool and cotton. It has twenty-two 
manufactories of soap which is made from olive-oil. The en- 
virons are beautifully green and fertile, and it is the best 
watered portion of Palestine which we have yet seen. An 
abundance of water flows through the town, but the streets 
are narrow and dirty, many of them being arched over so 
as to exclude light and air. There are a number of Mo- 
hammedan mosques, the majority of the inhabitants being 
of that faith, and sixty or seventy Jewish families; but the 
principal interest which attaches to the place lies in the fact 
that it is the home of the Samaritans, the oldest, the small- 
est, and the most bigoted sect in the world — and this last is 
saying a good deal for them. They number one hundred 
and fifty, and maintain the ancient traditions, faith, and 
worship of their ancestors, being the direct descendants of 
the mixed people who, after the refusal of the Jews to al- 



416 



Palestine, the Holy Land. 



low them to take part in the rebuilding of the temple, found- 
ed a holy city and sanctuary of their own here at Shechem 
and Gerizim. They still hold service regularly ; have a syn- 
agogue, and a high-priest who is '* in the succession," being a 
descendant of the tribe of Levi; observe all the Mosaic fes- 
tivals ; and, although the passover has never been observed 
by the Jews according to the law since the destruction of 
the temple, it has continued through all Christian centuries 
to be observed by the Samaritans on Mount Gerizim. At 
the time of its annual occurrence, they dwell for a fortnight 
in tents on its summit, and strictly observe every detail en- 
joined by Moses. They are the only people claiming to wor- 
ship God who offer sacrifices, and Gerizim is the only place 
in the world where the smoke of sacrifice ascends to Jeho- 
vah. Mount Gerizim is to them the most sacred place on 
earth. They believe that here Abraham offered up Isaac, 
and that Jacob saw here the vision of the ladder. They ex- 
pect the Messiah to appear six thousand years after the cre- 
ation of the world, but they do not consider that he will be 
greater than Moses. 

I was greatly interested in a visit to their temple, which 
is a small whitewashed chamber on a back street, with a 
school-room and other houses clustered under the same roof. 
We were received by the high-priest and two other priests, 
tall, dignified-looking men with long black beards, and a 
decidedly Jewish cast of countenance, who are so poor that 
they eke out a living by showing strangers their synagogue, 
and selling their photographs. They also exhibit with great 
pride and veneration the ancient Samaritan Codex of the 
Pentateuch, which they regard as a priceless treasure. This 
book is their fetish and, though of undoubted antiquity, their 
claim that it is three thousand three hundred and seventy- 
two years old and was written by Abishma, a great-grand- 
son o? Aaron, is of course mythical. They reject all of the 



From Jerusalem to Dothan. 



417 



Bible except the Pentateuch, and repeat their prayers in 
the Samaritan dialect, although Arabic is now the collo- 
quial language of the sect. 

The history of the race does not afford a more extraordi- 
nary spectacle than this fragment of people, preserving their 
identity through all the storms and persecutions of two thou- 
sand years, clinging with a death-like tenacity to their an- 
cient beliefs and customs, and living where their forefathers 
lived twenty centuries ago. Their history is strangely pa- 
thetic, well worthy of thought and study. 

Justin Martyr was a native of the old Neapolis. From 
thence this Christian Socrates used to wander through the 
cities of Western Asia, teaching and lecturing, intent on 
bringing learned pagans to Christ. He was the great apol- 
ogist for Christianity in that early age, and suffered mar- 
tyrdom A.D. 167. 

There is an interesting Baptist mission at Nablous in 
charge of the Bev. Youharmah el Carey, a native Syrian, 
who was educated in England. Mr. Carey, whom we met 
with his wife and sister-in-law, is a man of fine physique and 
commanding presence, and has been laboring here with a 
fair measure of success for a number of years. He is as- 
sisted by the Bev. Charles Felcher. The mission is whol- 
ly among the Arabs, and numbers seventeen members, with 
a school of sixty girls and thirty boys. 

This is the only Protestant mission in Palestine, except 
the Church of England missions, which I fear are accom- 
plishing very little. Some years ago a compact was entered 
into between the Church of England and the various Prot- 
estant bodies having missions in the East, by the terms of 
which the former was to occupy Palestine and leave the 
rest of Syria to the other Churches. This agreement has been 
faithfully carried out, except as regards this Baptist mission 
at Nablous, which is, I believe, the oldest mission in Palestine. 
27 



418 



Palestine, the Holy Land. 



Several miles beyond Nablous, we came in sight of a 
high, round, terraced hill, standing apart in the midst of a 
beautiful plain, which we at once recognized as Samaria, 
the city of Ahab and of Herod, and the scene of many of the 
most stirring events in the lives of Elijah and Elisha. The 
situation is a demonstration of the military skill of Omri, 
Kincr of Israel, who bought the hill of one Shemer, founded 
the city and made it the capital of the Northern Empire, a 
distinction which it continued to enjoy until the ten tribes 
were carried captive into Assyria. For twenty-five centu- 
ries it has had a checkered and memorable career, and 
though often besieged during the period of Bible history, it 
was only taken once, and that after a siege of three years. 
It was long the head-quarters of the idolatry against which 
the prophets boldly and indefatigably waged war, and it was 
here that Ahab and Jezebel, living in affluence and splen- 
dor, erected a magnificent temple to Baal, and substituted 
the worship of that deity for that of Jehovah. 

Here Elijah pronounced the curse of a three-years' famine 
upon the land, and it was to Samaria that Xaaman, the 
leper, came to be healed. The city was destroyed and re- 
built a number of times, and finally was presented by Augus- 
tus to Herod the Great, who caused it to be handsomely 
restored and fortified. It is now a small village called Sa- 
bastiyeh, but there are abundant traces of its former great- 
ness. The ruined columns and broken arches scattered 
everywhere speak eloquently of its pristine grandeur, and 
recall the judgments pronounced against the idolatrous and 
proud city of Ahab. Around the brow of the hill is a 
broad terrace sixteen yards wide, where ran the magnifi- 
cent colonnade, one thousand yards in length, with which 
Herod adorned the town. Sixty of these columns are still 
standing after nineteen, centuries, and many others lie half 
or wholly buried beneath the soil, or scattered on the lower 



From Jerusalem to Dothan. 



419 



terraces. We passed around the hill, along the avenue once 
adorned with these columns, through a fine old olive-or- 
chard, and down the terraced hill-side into a beautiful and 
fertile plain. This wide plain lies all around the hill, which 
rises like an island in a sea of verdure. It is one of the 
most richly cultivated portions of Palestine, and is indeed a 
land of corn and wine, of fig-trees and olives, of milk and 
honey. After crossing the plain, we climbed another emi- 
nence, from whence we had a magnificent view of the plain 
of Geher, with a number of towns and villages, while in the 
distance gleamed the blue waters of the Mediterranean. 

That same afternoon, we rode through the plain of Do- 
than, where Joseph found his brethren when he w r ent in 
search of them, and w ? e halted beside the pit where tradition 
says the young lad was left to perish. But as it is a well 
and contains water, we placed this in our " mythical cata- 
logue," which is daily growing in size. Standing on this 
plain of Dothan, we could easily people it with the great 
Syrian host which came up with horses and chariots against 
Israel; and beyond were the mountains which were full of 
a greater host of horses and chariots of fire "round about 
Elisha." How these thrilling old stories of the past come 
back to us as w 7 e travel over the places where they occurred, 
and fuller than ever of comfort and beauty are the lessons 
which they bring to us ! Could our eyes be opened as w T ere 
the eyes of Elisha's servant, we would find no less a host 
surrounding us in every time of peril or trial. 

Just before reaching our camping-place for the night, we 
rode through the largest olive - orchard I have yet seen. 
These orchards are not owned by one man, but a number of 
parties will have an interest in them, one man only owning 
two or three trees. Probably as many as five hundred per- 
sons had an interest in the grove through which W T e rode, 
which was about a mile in extent. Every tree pays a cer- 



420 



Palestine, the Holy Land. 



tain tax, and, in addition, one-tenth of the produce goes to 
the Government. The collection of the taxes is farmed out 
to the lowest bidder. These olive-trees are quaint, gnarled 
old trees which twist themselves into a thousand fantastic 
shapes, and remind me very much of a wrinkled old man. 
They are said to attain a great age, some of them being as 
old as a thousand years, and Mr. Floyd stated that he had 
seen some which he had every reason to believe were eight 
hundred years old, and which were still bearing. A good 
tree will average five bushels of olives per annum. There 
are a vast number of olive-orchards throughout Palestine, 
and olive-oil is one of the most important products of the 
country. 

The day's ride which we have been describing was a fa- 
tiguing one, and as we reached the brow of a hill and saw 
our white tents gleaming on the borders of the great plain 
of Esdraelon, a welcome shout went up from our little 
company. We soon reached the encampment, which was at 
Jenin, the scriptural En-gannim (Fountain of Gardens). 
It is a place of about three thousand inhabitants, and its 
gardens are still noted for their fertility, while the " Fount- 
ain " still supplies the village, and supplied our camp with 
excellent water. 

Our ride through Palestine has been thus far a very en- 
joyable one, and attended with much less fatigue than 
I had anticipated. We made a contract with Mr. Floyd 
before we left Joppa, by the terms of which he furnishes 
every thing — horses, tents, food, servants, camp equipment, 
pack-mules, etc. — pays all fees and backshish, provides 
guides and necessary guards, and we pay him a stipulated 
sum — one pound (about five dollars) per day. We have no 
trouble or annoyance about any thing, and thus far it has 
been like a continual picnic. We ride from twenty to twen- 
ty-five miles per day, and about four or five o'clock reach 



From Jerusalem to Dothan. 



421 



our camping-place, which is carefully selected with refer- 
ence to water, shade, etc. The tents -are always up when 
we arrive, and a basin of water and a refreshing cup of tea 
are ready for us. Two or three occupy a tent, each tent 
being provided with a carpet, little iron bedsteads, camp- 
stools, wash-stand, etc. Within an hour after our arrival, 
dinner is announced in the large dining-tent, and the bill 
of fare is equal to that of a first-class hotel. Soup, fish, en- 
trees, meats, vegetables, dessert, fruit, nuts, cheese, and cof- 
fee are usually on the menu, and the waiters are always 
well dressed and polite. After dinner we have singing and 
evening worship, after which we are usually tired enough 
to retire, and, when the guards or the wild pariah dogs of 
Syria do not annoy us too much, sleep soundly until Mr. 
Floyd's rising -bell has us up betimes to prepare for the 
day's march. Unless we are expeditious in our toilet, the 
tent is apt to come down on our heads, for the mules must 
be packed and hasten on ahead so that the encampment 
will be ready for us at the end of the day's journey. Loud 
cries of remonstrance and protest are always heard from 
the tents of the ladies when the muleteers begin to untie 
the ropes, and Mr. Floyd always runs w 7 ith great indigna- 
tion to their relief, telling the men in English (which they 
do not understand) to let those tents alone, while in the 
same breath he commands them in Arabic (which they do 
understand) to be as expeditious as possible and take the 
tents down immediately. Breakfast is soon announced, and 
by the time we are through the meal the mules are all 
packed and the caravan is ready to start. The baggage and 
camp equipments are sent by the most direct route, and go 
on ahead, while we fall in line on horseback and leisurely 
proceed on our day's march. We have fifty horses and 
donkeys, besides a number of pack-mules, twenty-four serv- 
ants and muleteers, ten or twelve tents, and a dragoman, 



422 



Palestine, tlie Holy Land, 



guards, etc., so that when we are in camp we have quite a 
little village. At noon a halt is made in some pleasant 
grove, usually beside a brook or spring, carpets are spread, 
and we have a lunch of cold meats, sardines, pickles, cheese, 
oranges, lemons, etc. A rest of about two hours prepares 
us for the afternoon ride. The whole party are standing 
the ride remarkably well, and the ladies seem to enjoy 
it as much as any of us. Mr. Greenlee, of Chicago, has a 
little daughter in the company who is only ten years old, 
but she is mounted on a gentle, sure-footed donkey, and it is 
difficult to tell which is the happiest, Belle or the donkey. 

It is very warm during the day, and our umbrellas are 
necessary to protect us from the fierce rays of the sun ; but 
toward evening it grows quite cool, and every night we 
sleep under blankets. Although travelers are frequently 
troubled with rain at this season, we have been so fortunate 
as to escape, and the weather has thus far been all that we 
could ask. To-morrow we will reach Nazareth, and spend 
the Sabbath at the birthplace of our Lord. 



VII, 

Nazareth and tfe fta of Kalilee. 



]"MHE three points of greatest interest to the traveler in 
J® Palestine are Bethlehem, Nazareth, and Jerusalem, 
the birthplace of our Lord, the home of his childhood and 
early manhood, and the scene of his crucifixion. We 
reached Nazareth Saturday evening, after riding all day 
across the great plain of Esdraelon. This beautiful, fertile 
plain is one broad expanse of green, and stretches clear 
across Palestine from the Mediterranean to the Jordan val- 
ley, a distance of about thirty miles, and is from ten to 
twelve miles wide. It is encircled by hills, and its horizon 
is like that of the Koman Campagna, where every summit 
has its legend and story. Its fertility surpasses any thing 
in Palestine, and under a proper system of cultivation, and 
with sufficient protection to life and property, it would fur- 
nish food for the whole land. It is owned almost entirely 
by a firm of Beirut bankers, who paid a large sum for it. 
Probably not more than half of it is cultivated, and that 
very poorly. But in fertility and beauty it is equal to the 
famed Valley of Virginia, which some portions of it much 
resemble. This plain has been the battle-field of nations, 
and from Barak to Napoleon its soil has been made rich 
and heavy with the blood of countless armies. It has been 
said that the blood shed on this plain would cover it. 
" Warriors of every nation have pitched their tents on the 
plain of Esdraelon, and have beheld the various banners of 
their nations wet with the dews of Tabor and of Hermon." 

(423) 



424 



Palestine, tJte Halt) Land. 



As we ride across this great plain we seem to hear the 
tread of the mighty hosts that have swept over it, as the 
soldiers of all countries have plunged their swords in each 
other's breasts, and we do not wonder that in the visions of 
the Apocalypse the last great battle of the world is pict- 
ured as that of Armageddon— Megiddo being the ancient 
name of this plain. In this plain King Saul met his fate; 
yonder space between Gilboa and Hermon was where Gid- 
eon and his three hundred picked men overthrew the Mid- 
ianites; here Barak, inspired by the song of Deborah, 
swept away the nine hundred iron chariots of Sisera; and 
there, later on, Assyrian, Koraan, Crusader, and Turk 
fought in turn, changing the velvety greensward into crim- 
son. Here, in 1799, was fought the great battle between 
the French and Turks, known as the battle of Mt. Tabor, 
when Kleber with fifteen hundred men kept the Syrian 
host of twenty-five thousand men at bay for six hours until 
^Napoleon came with six hundred more, and the Turks, 
thinking a large army was on them, turned and fled. 

Thus, as we rode on, places of the deepest sacred and 
historic interest w T ere before us and all around us. To the 
north, and in front of us across the plain, rose Little Her- 
mon and the mountains of Galilee. To the east rose the 
range of Gilboa, bare and dry, as David declared it should 
always be, with a few houses clustered on the top. Our 
dragoman said that he had seen it at all seasons, and it was 
always thus dry. South of us lay the mountains of Sama- 
ria, while on the west rose Mt. Carmel, a long mountain 
eighteen miles in length, five miles wide, and eighteen hun- 
dred feet high, standing out alone. With my glass I could 
see the convent which marks the place where Elijah's con- 
test with Ahab occurred, and as we looked over the plain 
I imagined I could see the chariot of Ahab dxiven fiercely 
through the storm toward Jezreel, and Elijah running be- 



Nazareth and the Sea of Galilee. 



425 



fore it. We could see in the distance on the right the bare 
spot marking the site of Megiddo, and we soon passed the 
site of Taanach. 

Two hours' ride brought us to Jezreel, once the home of 
princes, but now a miserable Arab village of mud huts, still 
called by the ancient name. The hill on which stood the 
summer capital of Ahab rises abruptly out of the plain 
which lies on three sides of it, and commands a magnificent 
view. Below us lay the plain of Jezreel, really a part of 
the Plain of Esdraelon, and across it, on the Galileean hills, 
w r e caught our first glimpse of some of the houses of Naza- 
reth. Nestling at the foot of the mountains, and embow- 
ered in lemon, orange, and citron groves, was Shunem, the 
scene of the raising of the Shunemite's son, 

In that village Elisha often found a home in the house 
of the good woman who prepared him a " little prophet's 
chamber " on the wall, a kindness which he so fully repaid 
in restoring her son to life. An hour's ride from Shunem 
to the east is Nain, the scene of a second resurrection, w 7 here 
our Lord halted the procession bearing the corpse of the 
only son of a widowed mother, and, commanding the dead 
to rise, restored him to his mother's arms. We rode down 
the hill, on the slopes of which was Naboth's vineyard, 
which, first stolen by the wicked Jezebel, became the trag- 
ical scene of a fearful retribution when she was thrown by 
infuriated men out of the palace window, and in that same 
vineyard the dogs licked her blood. 

About four o'clock in the afternoon we began to climb 
the gradual slope of the Galileean hills, and at length we 
reached Nazareth, which nestles among the hills in a nar- 
row valley. We were agreeably surprised to find it so good 
a town, and as we rode through it to the northern side, 
where our tents were pitched, we gazed with eager interest 
upon the houses and streets and circling hills which were 



426 



Palestine, the Holy Land. 



all our Lord knew of the world for thirty years. Nazareth 
is situated in a. basin, high above the plain, surrounded by 
a corona of hills. Secluded from the world, with the sub- 
lime heights towering all around it, it was the place of all 
others for a great mind to grow and develop. Kenan, striv- 
ing to account for the wonderful career of our Lord on nat- 
ural grounds, supposes that his mind was developed under 
the influences of the grand natural scenery which surrounds 
this little mountain town, and pictures the " marvelous 
boy" climbing the heights around Nazareth and " looking 
with his great e\es upon what seemed to him the boundless 
plain below ; and off to the sea which rolled upon the hori- 
zon, the emblem of immensity, of infinity, and of eternity. 
And so, in silence and communication with nature, his soul 
grew to its immeasurable greatness." But a greater than 
mere natural influences was at work upon the mind of Je- 
sus, and no theory can explain that wonderful life save the 
confession in our Creed that he " was conceived by the 
Holy Ghost and born of the Virgin Mary." This faith 
upon which our hopes rest becomes doubly sure as we look 
upon the hills which met the gaze of his childhood, and 
walk amid the scenes which were so familiar to him Every 
thing fits so wonderfully into the story of the Gospels that 
he is blind indeed who does not see here as elsewhere the 
harmony between the Land and the Book. 

Nazareth has a population variously estimated at from 
eight to ten thousand, two-thirds of whom are Greek and 
Latin Christians. The remainder are Mohammedans, with 
a small community of Protestants The Christians are on 
the increase, but it is a singular fact that there is not a Jew 
in the place. 

Most of the inhabitants are engaged in farming and 
gardening, and some of them in handicrafts and in the cot- 
ton and grain trade. They seem to be a thrifty, industri- 



Nazareth and the Sea of Galilee. 



427 



ous people, and the women and children are remarkable for 
their beauty. I saw many striking faces among the women 
and maidens gathered at the Virgin's Fountain in the even- 
ing. This fountain, in the north-eastern portion of the 
town, is the only spring which it possesses, and thither the 
daughters of Nazareth still come, as they have perhaps for 
two thousand years, to fill their large pitchers or urns, 
which they balance gracefully upon their heads. One even- 
ing I stood for some time watching the motley throng in 
their picturesque garbs and graceful attitudes, as they col- 
lected around the large and antiquated marble trough, and 
filled their jars and assisted each other in raising them to 
their heads, chatting unceasingly the meanwhile, and doubt- 
less retailing all the village gossip. And as I looked I 
thought of one who had doubtless often come down, eight- 
een hundred years ago, with the others, but who, while the 
rest told all they knew, "kept all these things to herself 
and pondered them in her heart." Undoubtedly the bright- 
eyed, thoughtful boy had often accompanied her thither, 
and as his mother filled her jar he had watched the en- 
circling hills around their mountain home and thought of 
the great world which lay beyond, where his work was to be. 

Sunday was a day long to be remembered. There were 
three parties camped at Nazareth — Cook's party of twenty- 
seven, Howard's of twenty, and our own of nineteen, making 
sixty-six in all — and we agreed to hold a union communion 
service. As we gathered in one of the large dining-tents, 
thoughts of Him who began his life and passed his early 
manhood in this quiet little mountain town filled our hearts 
and made the service a most impressive and interesting one. 
It was a great privilege to commemorate his death and pas- 
sion in that quiet valley, 

Where once his careless childhood strayed, 
A stranger yet to pain ; 



428 Palestine, the Holy Laud 



to look upon those hills which had been so familiar to him, 
and to sing his praise amid those scenes where was spent 
the largest portion of that life which changed the course of 
the ages, and so powerfully influenced the destinies of man- 
kind. Christ seemed to come nearer to me than ever be- 
fore, and that quiet Sabbath in Nazareth is one of the most 
memorable of my life. 

Toward the close of the day we climbed the high hill 
which rises five hundred feet above the town on the north, 
and found that it commanded one of the most extensive 
views in Palestine. I have been surprised at the magnifi- 
cent situation of Nazareth. So far from being hidden away 
among the hills, as some one has said, " it is secluded only 
as an eagle's nest is, at the summit of far-looking mount- 
ains." From that hill which we climbed that Sabbath 
evening an incomparably grand prospect flashed upon us, 
north, south, east, and west. On the slopes of the hill and 
below us lay the town, with its white limestone houses and 
flat roofs. Beyond it stretched the green, yellow, and brown 
plain of Esdraelon, with the round, wooded summit of Ta- 
bor rising in the foreground. To the west lay Carmel, and 
beyond it we could see the wide, far-flashing sea, while 
northward Hermon reared his gigantic head against the 
sky, his snowy crown looking like a diadem of glory in the 
warm tints of the setting sun. Doubtless from this same 
height our Lord had often looked out upon this scene and 
thought of that kingdom he should establish, which would 
be more enduring than the mountains that cannot be moved. 
It may have been that this was the very hill to the brow of 
which he was led by the wicked Nazarenes, who sought to 
cast him down headlong from thence. 

High up on the sides of this hill, occupying a command- 
ing position, which makes it the first house in Nazareth vis- 
ible to the traveler as he approaches from the plain of Es- 



Nazareth and the Sea of Galilee. 



429 



draelon, is the Nazareth Orphanage, one of the noblest 
institutions in Palestine, established for the instruction of 
orphans, by the Society for the Promotion of Female Educa- 
tion in the East. There are three lady workers there — 
Miss Adams, the superintendent; Miss Newey, who manages 
the educational department; and Miss Lee, whose province 
is the day-schools, village schools, and mothers' meetings. 
There are now eighty girls at the Orphanage, and the insti- 
tution seems to be under excellent management. The reci- 
tation-rooms, dormitories, and halls are models of neatness 
and good order, and I was much impressed with the good 
work which is evidently being done In an upper hall, 
seated on benches rising in tiers, the girls were all gathered, 
and sung for us in Arabic and English. And as their sweet 
young voices sung " Jesus of Nazareth passeth by," I could 
not doubt but that he did " pass by," and blessed the work 
which is being done in this home, of bringing these Syrian 
girls to the knowledge of his love. It was a fitting close to 
our Sabbath in Nazareth, and the soft melody seemed to be 
still lingering in the air long after w T e returned to our 
camp. 

It is eighteen miles in a straight line from Nazareth to 
Tiberias, on the Sea of Galilee, but the distance is made 
much greater by the winding path which it is necessary to 
take. This road has been a line of march for more than 
thirty centuries, and still all the caravans that go from the 
plain of Esdraelon through Nazareth to Damascus pass 
over it. From the Nazareth hill-tops to the shores of the 
lake the descent is 2,284 feet, so that we can understand 
what the evangelists mean when they speak of our Lord 
as going "down to Capernaum." 

The first village which Ave reach is El-Meshded, the an- 
cient Gath-hepher, the birthplace of the prophet Jonah, 
whose tomb is also shown here. In this mountain village, 



430 



Palestine, the Holy Land. 



within three miles of Nazareth, arose that prophet "out of 
Galilee " who flamed out as one of the earliest beacon-lights 
of prophecy, eight centuries before Christ. Descending 
into a valley green with orchards and planted grain, we 
reached Kefr Kenna, an insignificant little village of mud 
huts, which has been identified as the Cana of Galilee where 
Christ performed his first miracle; where he healed the son 
of the nobleman; and where Nathanael, "the disciple in 
whom was no guile," was born. A large fountain at the 
edge of the village, and still used for all purposes, is pointed 
out as the one from w T hich the water was taken which was 
converted into wine; while in the Greek Church two of the 
original " w r ater-pots " are still shown. 

Continuing our journey, we passed through the plain of 
Buttauf, between barley and durrah fields. Durrah is a kind 
of maize much used in Syria and Egypt, being the chief 
article of food in Upper Egypt and the Soudan. It does 
not form separate ears on the stalk like our Indian corn, 
but grows to a head like sorghum, and is indeed a species 
of sorghum, known to botanists as Sorghum vulgare. In 
crossing this plain we met a long caravan of several hun- 
dred Russian pilgrims, some riding and some on foot, going 
up to Jerusalem to Easter. At least half of them were 
women and most of them were in middle life, though there 
were many old people among them. They had little intel- 
ligence in their faces, but all wore an earnest, intent look. 
Such a company of English or Americans would have been 
gaily laughing and talking, but these were all trudging 
along in silence. Some of them had come two thousand 
miles, and all had endured sacrifices and privations to make 
this pilgrimage. Next week Jerusalem will be full of these 
pilgrims, gathered from all parts of the world. What a 
striking illustration of the power of Jesus upon the human 
heart ! 



Nazareth and the Sea of Galilee 



431 



From our lunching-piace we rode directly to Hattim, 
the Mount of Beatitudes, where our Lord delivered the 
Sermon on the Mount, the grandest discourse which ever 
fell from the lips of man. Daniel Webster said on his 
death-bed, and caused it to be engraved on his tombstone, 
that this Sermon on the Mount could not be a merely hu- 
man production. This mountain or hill rises abruptly out 
of the plain, and is about five hundred feet high. It has 
two horns or elevations, called the " Horns of Hattim," w T ith 
a depression between, forming a natural amphitheater about 
two hundred yards across, and where ten thousand people 
might easily stand. This depression is the bed of an old 
crater. I confess it gave me something of a shock when I 
discovered that the Sermon on the Mount was delivered on 
the crater of an extinct volcano. But the gulf is now filled 
up, and green grass and sweet wild flowers grow over the 
ashes. The southern horn is the highest, being about one 
hundred feet above this plateau, and the level space on the 
top is three hundred feet in circumference. Here undoubt- 
edly Christ sat with his disciples around him, while the 
multitude were in the amphitheater below. At his feet, two 
thousand feet below him, lay the beautiful Sea of Galilee 
beyond the plain of Hattim ; east of the sea towered the 
mountains of Moab, w T hich as we saw them were veiled in a 
soft, misty light; to the south Tabor rose in full view, a 
round mountain standing apart, and beyond it to the west 
were the mountains of Nazareth ; on the north w 7 ere the hills 
of Adash, beyond which tow r ered snowy Hermon, w 7 hile all 
around lay the lovely plains and fertile valleys of Galilee, 
green w T ith verdure and beautiful with wild flowers. Crown- 
ing the summit of a hill to the north-west was the gray, 
picturesque village of Safad, " a city set on a hill that could 
not be hid," and evidently furnishing to our Saviour his 
illustration. With deep emotion we stood on this sacred 



432 



Palestine, the Holy Land. 



spot and pictured to ourselves the scene as he " who spake 
as never man spake " delivered that wonderful sermon. 

Two hours' ride from Hattim brought us to Tiberias, the 
only inhabited city now on the shores of the lake. To reach 
this city a long hill must be descended by a circuitous route. 
As we gained the summit of this hill a transcendently love- 
ly view burst upon us. Far below us lay the beautiful wa- 
ters of the Sea of Galilee, as calm as a sea of glass, and mir- 
roring the clouds and mountains of Moab. The mountains 
beyond, and the hills of Bashan, still further off, were veiled 
in a soft light which concealed their barrenness and brought 
out rich and varied tints. The sea was visible from Tibe- 
rias on the right to Capernaum on the left, and lay in a 
deep basin, seven hundred feet below the level of the Med- 
iterranean. Gently sloping banks of green came down to 
the water's edge on the west, while on the eastern side the 
hills rose abruptly and precipitously. Hermon towered to 
the north, and away to the south an opening in the hills 
could be seen, through which the Jordan flowed. But while 
the beauty of the scenery is indescribable, it is lost sight of 
in the charm which must come to every traveler when he 
remembers that he is looking on what Dean Stanley justly 
calls "the most sacred sheet of water that this earth con- 
tains." Every spot within the range of vision is hallowed 
ground, sanctified by the presence and work of our Lord. 
Upon those waters his feet once trod; those waves once 
obeyed his voice, and were hushed to sleep. Yonder is the 
ruined site of Capernaum, his "own city;" on yonder slop- 
ing hill-side the swine into which the devils entered rushed 
down the steep and were choked in the sea; north-easterly 
is the plain on which Christ fed the five thousand; some- 
where within the range of vision lay the nine cities, the 
chief of which were Capernaum, Bethsaida, Chorazin, and 
Magdala, wherein most of his mighty works were done; and 



Nazareth and the Sea of Galilee, 



433 



around that lake the most important events of his active 
ministry occurred. 

The sea or lake — for it is only a small inland lake — is sur- 
rounded by hills except on the west, where the lake broad- 
ens out to its greatest width, and where lies the plain of 
Gennesaret, and on the south, where there is the opening 
for the Jordan Valley. While the prevailing tint of these 
hills is brown and somber, I confess that to me they were 
touched with an indescribable beauty. The sea is pear- 
shaped, the extreme length being twelve and a half miles, 
and the greatest width six and three-fourth miles. The 
shore-line for the most part is regular, except at the north- 
west, where it is broken into a series of exquisite little bays 
around which is the charming plain of Gennesaret with its 
beautiful fringe of bright-red oleanders and its pebbly, 
shelly beach. It was in this "Land of Gennesaret" that 
our Lord exercised so largely his healing power. At that 
time this plain was full of busy life, and this lake was the 
center of a dense population. Then a brave, thrifty, busy 
people crowded these hills and valleys, while the shores of 
the lake were lined with towns and hamlets. Galilee had 
no less than three millions of inhabitants, and it was one of 
the world's vital centers. Life beat high and strong, and 
the great currents of commerce and travel poured through 
these communities. It was difficult to realize this as we saw 
the utter desolation around us. It was truly a land left 
stranded upon the shores of civilization — a land 

So deadly fair, 
We start, for soul is wanting there. 

The shores of the lake where the busy feet of multitudes 
once trod are now silent, and the waters which were once 
plowed by scores of boats are now undisturbed save by the 
skiffs of a few fishermen. In many of the once populous 
cities around the lake not a human being is left. As we 
28 



434 



Palestine, the Holy Land. 



camped on the shores that night, no sound was to be heard 
save the screaming of the jackals which make their homes 
where were once the habitations of men, and their mourn- 
ful cry seemed to give voice to the mighty desolation. 

The next morning we entered into "a ship" — a good- 
sized skiff— and rowed across the lake to the ruins of an 
ancient city, supposed by some to be Capernaum, and by 
others to be Chorazin. We anchored at Tell Hum, and, 
wading through the long grass and weeds, came upon many 
broken columns and capitals which lay scattered around. 
Piles of hewn blocks of black basalt are found here, and 
also the remains of a great synagogue which was built of 
white limestone rocks. The capitals are of the Corinthian 
order, and there are also remains of a heavy cornice and 
frieze. If this is the site of ancient Capernaum, this was prob- 
ably the synagogue built by the Eoman centurion, and in 
which the well-known discourse contained in the sixth chap- 
ter of John was delivered. It was perhaps in the little creek 
where our little boat rode at anchor that Christ taught the 
people from the boat so as to avoid the crush of the multi- 
tude. It was doubtless in one of these inlets that James, 
the son of Zebedee, and John, his brother, were mending 
their nets when they left their ship and followed him; and 
it was on this coast that Andrew and Peter were casting 
their nets when they were summoned to become fishers of 
men. This little lake and its shores have a higher claim 
to be called the birthplace of the religion which has since 
revolutionized the world than any other portion of Palestine. 

A little further to the west we passed the ancient Beth- 
saida, but only a few wretched huts now mark the fishing 
village which was the home of Peter, Andrew, and Philip. 
As we saw the utter desolation which marks the site of these 
places, the words of our Lord came to us with j)rophetie 
force: "Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsa- 



Nazareth and the Sea of Galilee. 



435 



ida! for if the mighty works had been done in Tyre and 
Sidon which have been done in you, they had a great while 
ago repented, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. But it shall 
be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment, than 
for you." 

We camped that night at Khan Minyeh, near a beauti- 
ful spring which issues from the rocks. Mr. Floyd believes 
this to be the site of the ancient Capernaum, and the pre- 
ponderance of testimony is in its favor. It is on the bor- 
ders of the plain of Gennesaret, at the head of the lake, 
and worthy to be the site of a great city. It was on the 
direct route between Asia and Africa, between the valleys 
of the Tigris and Euphrates on the one hand, and the val- 
ley of the Nile on the other. This was the principal thor- 
oughfare through Palestine, and the situation of the city 
was such that it controlled the commerce of the whole sea, 
as well as the traffic with the interior. In the old Roman 
days this was one of the chief seats of Roman power in Pal- 
estine, and it was the most important city in Galilee. Tow- 
ering above our camp was a high cliff, on the top of which 
was a small plateau, which was probably the acropolis where 
stood the citadel and palace, while the city occupied the 
slopes and plain below. This hill rises abruptly from the 
lake, and forms the most conspicuous feature of its entire 
western shore line. Its height is about two hundred and 
fifty feet. If this be indeed the site, how striking are the 
words of our Saviour, which had a literal as well as figura- 
tive meaning : " But thou, Capernaum, which art exalted to 
heaven, shall be thrust down to hell! " The prophecy has 
been literally fulfilled, for no trace of the ancient magnifi- 
cence of the city remains. Crowded marts of trade, Roman 
palaces, and Jewish synagogues have all disappeared, and 
only an old Roman aqueduct remains to indicate that a 
great and populous city once stood there. 



VIII. 

farea Pbilippi— Head Waters of the Jordan. 



OE some distance after leaving the Sea of Galilee, the 
road is over an exceedingly rough country, very little 
of which is under cultivation. In fact, the great bowlders 
and stones render such cultivation almost wholly impracti- 
cable. No dwellings or villages are in sight, and a more 
desolate country cannot well be imagined. Not even a tree 
relieves the barrenness of the landscape, and we journeyed 
on through a country which was wholly uninteresting. But 
in the afternoon we came down into the plain of Merom, 
which was in delightful contrast to the barren, desolate hills 
over which we had been climbing. This plain is five miles 
wide and some twenty miles long, and through it flows the 
Jordan, which near its center widens out into the wa- 
ters of Merom. The plain is inclosed by high hills on 
the south and west, by the mountains of Moab and the hills 
of Bashan on the east. It is a favorite camping-ground of 
the Bedouin tribes, who make a great pasture-field of it. 
They come over in great numbers from their homes among 
the hills of Bashan, and bring their flocks and herds with 
them. They still live, as in ancient times, in tents made of 
black goats' hair — " the black tents of Kedar " of Scripture. 
This cloth is very strong and durable, and will resist the 
hardest rain. A dozen of these tents make an Arab vil- 
lage, and, as we saw them across the plain and on the sides 
of the hills, they looked exceedingly picturesque. After 
our tents were pitched, a large party of men, women, and 
(436) 



Cesar ea Philippi—Head Waters of the Jordan. 437 



children came with banners and music, and, forming a ring, 
executed a rustic dance on the greensward. The women and 
children were adorned with strings of coins around their 
heads and necks, and some of the latter were really beauti- 
ful. It was a unique performance, but the most interesting 
part to the Bedouins was the purse which we made up at 
its conclusion, and with which we presented them. 

The waters of Merom, anciently called the Lake of 
Huleh, is a small but very beautiful body of water, about 
five miles long by three and a half broad, fed by clear 
mountain springs, and through which the Jordan flows. 
The whole plain and region around is "a land of springs 
and fountains," and beautiful little streams thread the 
plain in every direction. It was here that Jabin, King of 
Hazor, brought the allied forces of all the surrounding 
kings against Joshua, who signally and disastrously defeated 
them. This vast theater of plain and marsh, valley and 
mountain, was covered with the fugitives and their fierce 
pursuers. This charming valley is the birthplace of the 
Jordan, the most sacred river of earth. The numerous 
streams w T hich gush out from earth and rock unite their wa- 
ters and form the main branch of the Jordan. This " well- 
watered " country is in striking contrast with much of the 
barren, desolate portion of Palestine through which we have 
passed. This is the great granary of the surrounding coun- 
try, and is the boast of the Arabs. The climate is warm, 
the soil exceedingly fertile, and the whole is irrigated by 
numerous canals and streams. No wonder that the spies 
exclaimed, " We have seen the land, and behold it is very 
good, a place where there is no want of any thing that is in 
the earth." 

At the head of this valley we reached Dan, the northern 
boundary of the Promised Land, which was defined as ex- 
tending " from Dan to Beersheba." The earliest mention 



438 



Palestine, the Holy Land. 



of Dan is in connection with Abraham, who pursued thither 
the Amorites who had captured Lot. From his tent door, 
under the great oak at Mamre, the " Father of the Faith- 
ful," hearing of his nephew's captivity, sweeps over the 
mountains and along the plains of Sychar and Esdraelon, 
pursuing much the same route that we had, until at the 
close of the fourth day he comes down upon them, and ut- 
terly discomfits them. Nor does he cease the pursuit until 
they have reached "Hobah, which is on the left hand of 
Damascus." 

Eight hundred years later, Dan was the scene of another 
fearful tragedy. It was then called Laish, and was inhab- 
ited by a careless, indolent, luxurious colony of Phenicians, 
who had no government and no moral character. They had 
no dealings with any man, no friends and no allies. It was 
a lawless period in the history of Israel, and the tribe of 
Dan, finding their inheritance too small for them, sent out 
a company of emigrants who, discovering the condition of 
affairs at Laish, determined to possess themselves of the 
city. They fall upon it suddenly, scale the walls, smite the 
inhabitants with fire and sword, and when the bloody work 
is over sit down in quiet possession, and, rebuilding the city, 
call it Dan after their own tribe. Henceforth it becomes 
the famous northern boundary of Israel. It is many cent- 
uries since Dan ceased to be a city, and not a single habita- 
tion is there to-day. We lunched under a beautiful, wide- 
spreading, terebinth-tree, just at the foot of the "Judge's 
Mound," whereon the city was built. This mound is about 
a quarter of a mile in diameter, and about fifty feet above 
the plain, commanding a magnificent view of the surround- 
ing country. With a deep trench and a strong wall, this 
site must have been almost impregnable. Just below us 
one of the fountains of the Jordan bursts out clear and 
beautiful from the rock, and a river of delicious water flows 



Cesarea Philippi — Head Waters of the Jordan. 439 



on through the charming valley. There is no more lovely 
spot in all Palestine, and the whole valley could be con- 
verted into a paradise of fruits and flowers. But herds of 
black buffaloes wash in the crystal pools of the fountain, 
and a wilderness of briers and thorn-bushes cover the spot 
where the city once stood. 

Through beautiful groves and over velvety turf, we rode 
four miles to our camp, which was a little south of Cesarea 
Philippi, the modern Banias. Within sight of us, and 
doubtless on one of the spurs of Hermon, which rises to the 
north of the town, our Lord was transfigured. The connec- 
tion and subsequent events seem to locate this wonderful 
event here rather than at Tabor. The latter mountain 
could scarcely have been the place, even if the connection 
indicated it, since at that time the whole summit was cov- 
ered by a vast castle, which was occupied by soldiers. Our 
Lord had just come with the disciples from the Sea of Gal- 
ilee ; the interview with Peter takes place at Cesarea Phil- 
ippi, and then six days after follows the transfiguration. 
Soon after the transfiguration they returned to Capernaum, 
and thence made the last journey through Galilee and Sa- 
maria. It would have been a useless and long journey to 
Tabor, which lies beyond Nazareth, and back again, and no 
mention is made of it. I know of no reason why Tabor 
should have been selected, save that it is " a high mountain 
apart," and one of the peaks of Hermon occupies the same 
isolated position. This is as far north as our Lord ever 
went, and he spent several w T eeks here during the last year 
of his ministry. While here, with his usual compassion, he 
taught the people and healed their diseases. Eusebius says 
that the woman cured of an issue of blood belonged to this 
city. He says: " They say that her house is shown in the 
city, and the wonderful monuments of our Saviour's benefit 
to her are still standing at the gate of her house. On an 



440 



Palestine, the Holy Land. 



elevated stone stands a brazen image of a woman on her 
bended knees, with her hands stretched out before her like 
one entreating. Opposite to this there is another image of 
a man erect, of the same material, decently clad in a man- 
tle, and stretching out his hand to the woman. This, they 
say, is a statue of Christ, and it has remained even until our 
times, so that we ourselves saw it when staying in that city." 
Possibly these may yet be brought to light when all the 
rubbish of the city has been explored. Theophanes, how- 
ever, says that Julian the Apostate broke them to pieces. 

Banias is a small, insignificant village, but the ruins of 
the magnificent city, which was adorned by Herod the 
Great and enlarged by Philip the Tetrarch, are scattered all 
around, and some of the ancient pillars are built into modern 
huts. It was here that Titus, after the destruction of Jeru- 
salem, was feasted by Agrippa for twenty days, and in the 
celebrated temple here he " returned public thanks to God 
for the good success he had in his undertaking." Tin's great 
temple of Panium was situated near the magnificent fount- 
ain which is the principal source of the Jordan. It bursts 
in a hundred streams from the side of the mountain, just 
above the old city, and the newborn river sings at once its 
merry song, which is echoed by all the surrounding hills. 
For several miles it goes leaping and dashing over the rocks 
and great bowlders in a series of miniature cascades, and 
seems to be clapping its hands and shouting for joy at its 
release from the dark caves of the mountain where it had 
been so long confined. I have never seen so clear and 
beautiful a mountain stream, nor heard sweeter rippling 
melody than the singing of this little river where it is 
spanned by a rustic bridge just before you enter town. Just 
above this fountain is a great cave in the face of the red 
limestone cliff, which was formerly the sanctuary of Pan. 
Doubtless Baal was here worshiped as well as Pan, and 



Cesarea Philippi — Head Waters of the Jordan. 441 



niches and Greek inscriptions remain in the rock to the left 
of the cave. The most striking feature about the modern 
town of Banias is the small, square booths of green branches 
on frames of bamboo which are on the top of almost every 
house, and which are the summer sleeping-places of the in- 
habitants. 

Just above Banias, on a hill rising twenty-five hundred 
feet above the sea-level, are the ruins of a great castle. We 
climbed up to these ruins, going at first through olive- 
orchards w 7 hich occupied the lower slopes of the hill, and 
finding it more bleak and bare as we went higher. Having 
gone as far as we could on our horses, we scrambled up the 
remainder of the steep ascent on foot. These ruins are of 
enormous size and strength, and exhibit every variety of 
architecture from the Phenician to the seventeenth century. 
The castle is undoubtedly of very great antiquity, the 
beveled stones showing that its massive foundations were 
laid by the Phenicians. The ornamentation is in many 
places elaborate and beautiful, and many of the walls and 
gate-ways are in good state of preservation. The ruins are 
about three hundred yards long and about one hundred 
yards wide, and while much of the structure has tumbled 
down, sufficient remains to show its original grandeur. 
There is no history of the castle reaching back beyond the 
Crusades. It figures largely in the wars between the Sar- 
acens of Damascus and the Templars of Jerusalem. As it 
commanded the pass from the Huleh and the plains of the 
Jordan over Hermon to Damascus and the east, it must al- 
ways have been a place of great importance. The view 
from the ruins is one of the finest in Palestine, and em- 
braces a magnificent outlook which is unsurpassed any- 
where. On every side there is a sheer descent, in some 
places into a gorge a thousand feet deep, the buildings 
having covered the whole summit of the mountain. The 



442 



Palestine, the Holy Land. 



entire plain below is visible, while beyond lie the hills of 
Bashan, the mountains of Galilee, the round top of Tabor, 
and the gleaming waters of Merom. The slopes of Sermon 
rise to the north, while the gorges and canons all around 
add sublimity and majesty to the scene. 

At Banias we bade farewell to Palestine and entered 
Syria proper. For thirty days we had been riding through 
the land from Dan to Beersheba, and from the Jordan to 
the Great Sea, and had traveled nearly three hundred miles 
on horseback. And as we had thus passed through the 
country, following the footsteps of prophets, conquerors, 
and apostles — perhaps along the very paths which our Sav- 
iour trod— nothing impressed me so much as the corre- 
spondence between the Land and the Book. No intelligent 
and impartial observer who travels through that land can 
doubt that the Bible was written there, for it is a constant 
surprise and delight to see how the narrative fits into the 
very landscape, and is reflected in it, as trees on the bank 
of a river are reflected in its bosom. At every step the 
sacred story becomes more real and more true. Henceforth 
Bethlehem and Jerusalem, Olivet and Gethsemane, Naza- 
reth and Galilee will have a new meaning for me. Though 
the country is to a large extent barren and desolate, though 
the rugged hills are cheerless and destitute of vegetation, 
and though the foxes have their holes and the birds their 
nests where prophecy predicted that they should have them, 
every rock and hill and valley is rich in hallowed memories 
and the very air is filled as with the presence of archangels. 

Our last evening in Palestine was a memorable one. The 
night was unspeakably solemn and holy; the stars thrilled 
with intense luster in the azure sky ; historic presences 
filled the air; the Pleiades. Taurus, and Orion flamed on 
high, while other great southern constellations were flashing 
over the Lebanon mountains. 



Cesarea Philippi — Head Waters of the Jordan. 443 

And not a breath crept through the rosy air, 

And yet the forest leaves seemed stirred with prayer. 

I was looking upon the same sky that David saw when 
he said, " When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy 
fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained ; 
what is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of 
man, that thou visitest him?" and from the depths of my 
heart I thanked Him that he had visited us in the person 
of his Son, and that I had been permitted to travel in the 
footsteps of the Master through that " good land " of 
mountain and vale, lake and river, to compare the Land 
and the Book, and to find how wonderfully the two agreed. 
And I could say that night beneath those solemn stars and 
in the presence of the mighty past, 

There's nothing bright above, below, 
From flowers that bloom to stars that glow, 
But in its light my soul can see 
Some feature of thy Deity ! 



"VII. 

THE LEVANT. 



HEEE'ER we tread 'tis haunted, holy ground; 
No earth of thine is lost in vulgar mold ; 
But one vast realm of wonder spreads around, 
And all the muse's tales seem truly told. 
Till the sense aches with gazing to behold 
The scenes our earliest dreams have dwelt upon; 
Each hill and dale, each deepening glen and wold: 
Defies the power which crushed thy temples gone. — Byron. 

(445) 




I. 

Damascus, 



HE country around Banias everywhere bears evidence 
of its Roman occupancy. Broken pillars and magnifi- 
cent capitals, ruined arches and fallen columns tell the story 
of its former grandeur. We frequently followed for some 
distance the track of an old Roman road, and would occa- 
sionally cross a bridge whose massive arch showed Roman 
workmanship. Those old Romans were great builders, and 
left their impress on every land they occupied. Roads, 
bridges, aqueducts, castles, palaces — these are the monu- 
ments which these old masters of the world have left, and 
their foot-prints will remain for centuries yet to come. 

We found the valley and hills beyond Banias exceed- 
ingly beautiful. In the fresh morning light they were all 
like the Mount of Transfiguration, and the ruins of the old 
gray castle perched upon the summit of the highest mount- 
ain looked like an aerial sentinel. The air was enchanting, 
the sunlight was an elixir of life, the song of the birds w r as 
like the music of angels, and the holy peace and calm rest- 
ing upon the landscape seemed like the benediction of 
heaven. I felt that God had made this world very beauti- 
ful, and there are no more lovely spots than these enchant- 
ing vales and dells around Banias. How fitting that the 
Jordan, hallowed by so many sacred associations, should 
find its source amid such scenes ! 

As we went on we began to climb the mountains, spurs 
of Hermon, while the highest peaks, with some scanty snow- 

(447) 




448 



The Levant 



fields on their summits, towered to our left. We passed 
several little Alpine villages, nestling under the sides of the 
mountains as if for protection, and from each of these troops 
of little Arabs and Syrians would besiege us with fossils 
and relics for sale. We crossed the mountains at an eleva- 
tion of five thousand feet, while the highest peaks of Her- 
mon towered still five thousand feet above us. We toiled 
on all the morning over rocks and wild wastes, until at 
noon we suddenly saw a charming little paradise at the foot 
of a steep, rocky hill. Descending to it, we lunched in a 
beautiful grove of Lombardy poplars amid singing springs 
and flowing streams. These constituted the head waters of 
the Pharpa, and beyond lay the great plain of Damascus, a 
dry and sterile desert, in the midst of which is the green 
and fertile oasis surrounding the city. 

As I rode into Damascus the spirit of the Arabian Nights 
seemed to walk the streets, and I almost expected to hear 
the talking bird and the singing tree, or to meet Haroun 
al Kaschid in disguise, or Sinbad or the Little Hunchback. 
No city in all the world, save Jerusalem, possessed for me 
the interest that this one did, and I approached it with ea- 
gerness, not unmingled with awe ; for it is the oldest known 
habitation of man, reaching far back into the twilight of his- 
tory. Eleazer, the trusty steward of Abraham, was a citizen 
of it nearly four thousand years ago, and the Arabs main- 
tain that Adam was created here out of the red clay that 
is now fashioned by the hand of the potter into many other 
forms. 

We had been riding all day through a dry and barren 
desert, which spread around us like a boundless ocean, and 
whose sands appeared to quiver under the shower of sun- 
beams. About the middle of the afternoon we began to 
hear the murmur of waters, and soon a forest of green ap- 
peared in sight. In a little while we were entering long 



Damascus. 



449 



lanes of pleasant shadows, which lay between vast orchards 
of apricots, pomegranates, lemons, oranges, and nectarines, 
whose blossoms loaded the air with fragrance; while the 
cool, beautiful waters gushed and gleamed and sparkled 
all around us, from aqueduct above and rivulet below, and 
marble fountains in the walls — everywhere it poured forth 
its rich abundance. It is the magic touch of these waters 
which has caused the garden to blossom in the desert, giv- 
ing perpetual freshness to the trees and grass and flowers, 
so that the city is literally set in a sea of verdure. As we 
rode on among these gardens and fountains and odors, we 
caught many bewildering glances of Oriental life such 
as we had seen nowhere else.' Here was a little artificial 
lake in a paved quadrangle, with a bubbling fountain in 
the center, while all around were tables at which sat tur- 
baned Turks, drinking cool sherbet and smoking their 
''hubble-bubbles." There was the portal of a large khan 
with another fountain and cistern in the midst. Camels 
and bales of merchandise and white-clad turbaned Nubians 
w 7 ere scattered over its wide court, and an arcade of shops 
or offices, in which were more smoking Turks, surrounded 
it. Another portal opened into a public bath, with its fount- 
ain, its reservoirs, its gay carpets, and its luxurious inmates, 
who recline upon cushioned divans as they smoke their 
chibouques. Long, darkened arcades, with their dazzling 
bazaars on either side, stretched to our right and left, and 
altogether there was a bewildering sensation of having sud- 
denly dropped from the prosaic, matter-of-fact nineteenth 
century into the days when caliphs reigned, and genii talked 
with common mortals, and Aladdin's wonderful lamp was 
still in existence. 

Still there is much that is disappointing in Damascus, and 
it is not the city of palaces and of Oriental magnificence of 
w T hich you have dreamed. No vestige remains of the pal- 



450 



The Levant. 



aces of the Saltans; and, indeed, very few traces of its an- 
tiquity are to be seen. There is not a single specimen of 
fine Saracenic architecture in the city, and most of the 
houses are meanly built. Large, square blocks of dried mud 
seem to be the favorite building-material, and there is no 
plan or architectural design in the construction of the low, 
flat- roofed houses. The streets are narrow and crooked, and 
many of them very dirty. Even the "street that is called 
Straight " is such only by courtesy, for it veers to almost 
every point of the compass. Next to Constantinople, Da- 
mascus has the largest canine population of any city in the 
world, and a peculiarity of the dogs seems to be their par- 
tiality for the flat roofs of the houses. As we passed along 
the streets, we were saluted by yelps and howls from almost 
every house-top. 

Despite all this, Damascus is a quaint, curious, and inter- 
esting old city. What a wonderful history it has had! 
From the days of Abraham until now, it has been one of 
the most important cities in all the East. Naaman, the 
captain of the Syrian host, whose leprosy was healed by 
Elisha, was an inhabitant of this city ; and as I looked upon 
the crystal waters of Abana and Pharpar, I did not wonder 
that he thought they were better than " all the waters of 
Israel." The Christian Church was early planted here, and 
it was for the purpose of rooting it up that Saul of Tarsus, 
armed with letters from the high-priest, was journeying 
along the very road we had traveled, when the vision and 
the voice transformed him into Paul, the apostle. Nothing 
invests Damascus with so much interest as the fact that it 
was the scene of the conversion of the great apostle to the 
Gentiles; and we of course visited the reputed house of 
Ananias, though only the cellar of the original house re- 
mains. Outside the walls, the place is shown where Paul 
was let down in a basket; and we also had pointed out the 



Damascus. 



451 



tomb of St. George, the porter who admitted Paul into the 
house. 

Damascus was for many centuries a Christian city, and 
the Great Mosque, like that of St. Sophia in Constantino- 
ple, was originally a Christian Church. In the upper beam 
'of a gate- way this well-preserved inscription in Greek is 
still to be seen: " Thy kingdom, O Christ, is an everlasting 
kingdom, and thy dominion endureth throughout all gener- 
ations." The city was long the residence of a Chris- 
tian Bishop, who, in point of rank, was the second in the 
patriarchate of Antioch. But in the contest between the 
Byzantines and the Persians in the seventh century, Chris- 
tianity began to wane, and Islamism was introduced soon 
afterward. It was not many centuries before Damascus 
became the seat of the Caliphate and the capital of the Mo- 
hammedan world. Though it has long since lost its polit- 
ical importance, it is still the great seat of Moslem power, 
where the spirit of Islamism survives in its intensity. It is 
a very furnace of Moslem fanaticism, its inhabitants sur- 
passing all other Mohammedans in their intense intolerance. 
The great caravans of pilgrims for Mecca and Bagdad usu- 
ally leave Damascus in January, and at that time the fa- 
naticism of the population reaches its climax, and they are 
ready, on the slightest provocation, to show their resentment 
at the presence of Christians in the City of the Faithful. 
This annual pilgrimage to Mecca is the great event in the 
Moslem calendar. A procession of thousands mounted on 
camels files through the city, amid the intense enthusiasm 
of the inhabitants, and slowly takes its way toward Mecca. 
Forty days are spent on the journey; a similar length of 
time is consumed in worship at the tomb of the prophet; 
and, with the forty days necessary for the return trip, three 
months are altogether taken up in this holy pilgrimage. 
But it is the great event in the lives of the pilgrims, and he 



452 



The Levant. 



who has been able to make it ever after wears a turban of 
green, the color of the prophet, and is held in great venera- 
tion by all faithful Moslems. 

In 1860 a massacre of the Christians in the Lebanon, by 
the Druses, took place, and many of the Christians in the 
villages around Damascus took refuge in the city. Shortly 
afterward the Mohammedans there, at a given signal, rose 
in a body and commenced a general massacre; and for 
three days the city was given up to murder. It is esti- 
mated that no less than three thousand adult Christians 
were slain in cold blood, and many of the women and chil- 
dren were sold into slavery. 

Damascus was once an important manufacturing and 
commercial place, being the great starting-point of the car- 
avan traffic with the East, but commerce has drifted away 
from it to other points more accessible to the trade of the 
world. Steam-ships and railroad trains have taken the 
place of the slow-moving "ships of the desert," and the 
glory of Damascus as " the eye of the East " has forever 
departed. Even the world-renowned sword-blades are no 
longer manufactured here. The trade was transferred to 
Khorassan by one of the many conquerors that have rav- 
aged this fair city. The steel was " cut as fine as horse- 
hair, and interwoven with gold as finely drawn as woman's 
tresses; " then subjected to fire, till each metal became im- 
bued with the virtues of the other, and the blade would 
cut gossamer as it floated in the air. But as the name of 
Saladin has long since ceased to be the terror of Christen- 
dom, so the Damascene blade has forever perished, and the 
city which gave birth to both sits with her decaying civili- 
zation on the seat of her ancient greatness, more a thing of 
the past than of the present. 

There are about five thousand Christians in Damascus, 
out of a population of three hundred thousand. Most of 



Damascus. 



453 



these belong to the Latin Church, while there are some 
Greeks and a few Armenians. Most of these are as fanat- 
ical and as grossly ignorant as the Moslems. There is a 
small Presbyterian Church and also a small Church of 
England congregation. The Jews amount to six or seven 
thousand, and are said to be very wealthy. 

The most beautiful view of Damascus is to be obtained 
from the hills on the west. I shall never forget the evening 
we rode out to these hills, nor the exquisite view which we 
had from their summit. For miles around us lay the dead 
desert, while at our feet, with this ocean of sand encircling 
it, lay such an island of verdure as perhaps nowhere else 
exists. Masses of foliage rolled like waves among garden 
tracts of brilliant emerald green, while "the clustering 
blossoms of the orange or the nectarine lay like flecks of 
foam upon that verdant sea." White minarets shot up 
their fairy towers among the groves, and purple mosque- 
domes, tipped with the golden crescent, made a striking 
contrast with the green foliage in which they w T ere embow- 
ered. No sound from the busy life of the great city came 
to us, and we might well have thought that we w r ere look- 
ing upon a charming picture, such as is to be seen nowhere 
else in the world. Viewing it here, I do not wonder that 
Mohammed thought it a Paradise, and would not even go 
into it lest he should miss the Paradise above. A small 
mosque marks the spot where the Prophet is said to have 
stood and thus looked over the city. 



II. 

BaalkG and Beyroot 



OR several miles after leaving Damascus our route lay 
through the narrow valley of the Abana, which is full 
of wild and romantic scenery. High cliffs are on one side 
and naked limestone rocks on the other, while between 
these dashes the beautiful Abana, with a narrow strip of 
verdure along its banks. Within this space, which is only 
a few rods wide, grow trees and plants of every variety, 
with almost tropical luxuriance. A long, waving line of 
poplars marks the course of the stream as far as the eye 
can reach, while the splendid diligence road from Damascus 
to Beyroot runs through this extraordinary ravine. We 
soon left this charming little valley, which was like a vision 
of Arcadia, and all the morning w r e were climbing the bar- 
ren rocks and steep hills of the Anti-Lebanon range. 

At noon we came again upon the river at its source, and 
lunched at the fountain of Fijeh, this beautiful stream, like 
the Jordan, springing out of the heart of the earth. Like the 
Jordan also, it had its source honored by a pagan temple. 
The fountain is in a kind of cave over which are the ruins 
of this old temple, which was probably dedicated to the river 
god. The water as it breaks out from the rock is not a 
mere fountain, but is a full-grown river at its source, and 
rushes forth as fresh and strong as when the old pagan wor- 
shipers bathed in its limpid stream. The fountain dis- 
charges about a thousand gallons per minute, and flows 

with a deafening roar which drowns all other noises. Dur- 
(454) 




Baalbec and Beyroot. 



ing the afternoon we passed over ledges of rock and steep 
embankments, crossing many swift mountain streams and 
seeing much wild and rugged scenery. The hills are all 
terraced, and the water is carried along these terraces in 
channels for irrigation. Wherever it thus comes the rugged 
hills blossom at its magic touch. At last, through fragrant 
lanes of gum-cistus and wild roses, we entered the plain of 
Zebedani, about three miles in breadth and some six miles 
long. This is a beautiful and well-cultivated plain, with 
extensive orchards and gardens, the richest that are to be 
seen in Syria. These orchards are protected by hedges and 
brier fences, and the whole plain is like a garden. The hill- 
sides are covered with vineyards, and it is evidently a re- 
gion of plenty. I have seen no more charming country 
than these valleys of the Anti-Lebanon, and the mountains, 
on which the snow was still lying, look down on the love- 
liest of landscapes. The people of this region seem to be a 
simple, thrifty folk, and that evening a number of modest 
maidens and shy, shrinking children came trooping around 
our camp. 

On a high hill which overlooked our camp that night the 
tomb of Abel w 7 as pointed out, and the plain is consecrated 
by being the place w T here Cain committed the murder. 
Adam and Eve are supposed to have been chief mourners, 
and, having recovered the body of Abel, to have placed it 
in its present elevated resting-place. 

The next morning we rode for several hours through 
some matchless scenery. To our right towered for fifteen 
hundred feet great masses of rock which looked like the 
ruined castles of an extinct race of giants. The sky seemed 
to rest upon them, and a few fleecy clouds looked like the 
drapery which concealed from our vision the towers and 
battlements of the celestial city. There w 7 ere patches of 
snow on the mountains, and little rills came running down 



456 



Tlie Levant 



to bless the valley below. It almost looked as if we might 
see the angels beyond the clouds, and I do not wonder that 
so many ignorant races have imagined that the seats of the 
gods were in the mountains. The South Sea Islanders 
think that the spirits of the departed dwell there; they go 
up and shout to them, and think the echo is the answer. 

We crossed the water-shed of the Anti-Lebanon range at 
an elevation of four thousand five hundred feet, when the 
whole Lebanon range came into view, a mighty Avail of daz- 
zling snow with beautifully cultivated plains below. From 
thence we descended into the valley of Coele-Syria, one of 
the most beautiful valleys in the East, if not in the world. 
A few moments more and we came in sight of the six great 
columns of Baalbec, towering above every thing else, and 
visible for a great distance across the beautiful plain in 
which the gigantic ruins are situated. The vale is about 
twelve miles wide, and divides the Lebanon from Anti-Leb- 
anon. It is extremely rich and fertile, and is one of the 
best-cultivated portions of Syria. 

The ruins of the Baalbec temples are the most magnifi- 
cent on earth, and the Great Temple there w r as one of the 
wonders of the world. Tradition says that it was built by 
Solomon in order to please one of his Sidonian wives, who 
was a sun-worshiper. The legend is that he pressed into 
service numbers of the genii, male and female, who were un- 
der his command, the former building the walls, and the 
latter carrying the stones from the quarry. As Dr. Thomp- 
son says : " The remains at Baalbec are adequate to meet the 
demands of any history, and some of them may claim an 
antiquity equal to any thing that even Egypt can boast. 
The substructures of the great temple can scarcely be of a 
later age than that of Solomon, and may have supported a 
magnificent edifice in the time of Joshua." 

It is difficult to convey an adequate idea of these ruins in 



Baalbec and Beyroot. 



457 



their full grandeur. Every thing is colossal. The entire 
group of temples was erected on a vast artificial platform, 
itself as enduring as the cliffs of nature that it imitates, the 
rock of which it is composed measuring from thirty to six- 
ty feet in length. The area thus made is larger than that 
of the temple at Jerusalem. No one knows by whom or by 
what race of men this base w r as built, but on it have been 
successively reared the great structures of the Phenicians, 
the Corinthian temples of the Romans, and the light, fan- 
tastic architecture of the Saracens. The original founda- 
tions and earlier temples were dedicated to the sun under 
the name of Baal; when Antoninus Pius built his Corin- 
thian temple in the second century of the Christian era, de- 
signing it to be in the East what the Parthenon was in 
Athens, and the Pantheon at Rome, he continued the same 
dedication under the name of Helios. Then came the Sar- 
acens, who preferred the ancient name of Baalbec to that of 
Heliopolis, and the crescent usurped the place of the god of 
day. Still later, when Christianity became the religion of 
the Roman Empire, the great temple was made a Christian 
church. But cross, crescent, and sun-worship have long since 
disappeared, and the great platform— itself seemingly of Cy- 
clopean architecture — is strewn with a vast profusion of 
broken masses of buildings. On the south-east, w T here a 
portion of the magnificent portico still remains, an ava- 
lanche of splendid ruins seems pouring from the old temple 
on the plain, and colossal columns, arches, chapiters, and 
entablatures lie heaped in magnificent confusion. 

The most ancient portions of these great ruins are the 
foundations on the west and north sides of the great temple. 
The stones are the largest ever used in the construction of 
any building or Avail, and look as if they must have been 
reared in their places by Titans. The first tier above 
ground consists of huge stones of different lengths, nine of 



458 



The Levant. 



theru being thirty feet long and twelve and a half feet thick. 
These are larger than any of the foundation-stones of the 
temple at Jerusalem, or any blocks in the Great Pyramid. 
But in the western wall, nineteen feet above ground, are the 
three giants of the world, one of the stones being sixty-four 
feet long, another sixty-three feet and eight inches, and the 
remaining one sixty-three feet. They are each thirteen feet 
high, and somewhat thicker, and weigh hundreds of tons. 
The three stones together measure in length one hundred 
and ninety feet and eight inches. 

The quarry where these Cyclopean stones were hewn is 
about a mile distant, and the largest stone of all still lies 
there, never having been raised to its place in the wall. It 
is fourteen by seventeen, and is sixty-nine feet long. Some 
idea of its immense size may be formed from the statement 
that three very respectable rooms might be cut in it, and 
still leave partition walls three feet thick. 

It has long been one of the unsolved problems of mechan- 
ics as to how such gigantic blocks could be transported a 
mile over uneven ground and elevated to their position in 
the temple wall. But an ancient tablet which was recently 
discovered, and is now in the British Museum, throws light on 
the subject, and may also elucidate the mystery of the build- 
ing of the Pyramids. Rollers were put under these stones, 
and they were drawn up inclined planes by sheer human 
muscle. The whole scene is rudely pictured on this tablet. 
There is the army of slaves, hundreds to a single roller, and 
over them are the cruel task-masters, who, with lash in hand, 
goad them on to pull all together, and the king sits on high 
giving the signal with his hand for all to work together to 
move the mountain of stone. So that every stone in those great 
ruins represents human tears and blood, and the building 
of the Great Temple must have consumed the population of 
a province and the wealth of an empire. Well may Jo- 



Baalbec and Beyroot. 



459 



seph Cook say, " Baalbec is a ruin ; God be thanked, a 
ruin! " 

It is half a mile around the walls, and the space within 
them was laid out like an acropolis. The Great Temple 
was approached from the east by a flight of steps some fifty 
feet high. The visitor entered a magnificent portico one 
hundred and eighty feet in length, and thirty-seven feet 
wide, much of which is still standing. The great portal, 
which was seventeen feet wide, led into an hexagonal vesti- 
bule which was two hundred feet in diameter, and which is in 
a ruinous condition. This opened into a great quadrangular 
court four hundred and seventy-six feet long, and three 
hundred and seventy feet wide, which was surrounded by 
columns, chapels, oratories, niches, and statues of exquisite 
workmanship. Crossing this vast court, you entered the 
great temple, which towered toward the sky with its stat- 
ues, golden gates, and colonnades. The plan was similar to 
that of the Parthenon at Athens. The peristyle was two 
hundred and ninety feet in length, and one hundred and 
sixty feet in breadth, and its columns, which were origi- 
nally fifty-four in number, were seventy feet high, and over 
seven feet in diameter. The sole remains of this peerless 
temple, once the admiration of the world, are six of these 
huge columns which still 

Stand sublime, 
Flinging their shadows from on high, 

Like dials which the wizard Time 
Had raised to count his ages by. 

The lesser temple, which is the so-called Temple of the 
Sun, is well preserved, though the stone roof has fallen in. 
This is also of Corinthian architecture, and stands upon a 
lower platform to the south of its greater neighbor. It is in 
the form of a parallelogram, also surrounded by columns, 
and its general shape is that which is so often copied from 



460 



The Levant. 



the Greeks. This peristyle consisted of forty-four columns, 
each forty-six feet and six inches high, nineteen of which 
remain standing with their rich sculptured entablature, con- 
sisting of wreaths of foliage encircling the busts of emperors 
and gods. 

How glorious must have appeared these great temples 
when worshipers thronged their courts, and when the mighty 
Emperors of Koine bowed at their shrines! But they have 
been the spoil of ages, and the great ruins now stand only 
as monuments of human vanity. The religion which was 
once powerful enough to build such temples as these has dis- 
appeared from the earth, while Christianity, which was then 
in its infancy, has gone into all the world, and the Sun of 
Kighteousness has risen with healing in his wings for all the 
nations. The crescent has paled before the light of the cross, 
and the religion of love has taken the place of the cruel and 
polluted paganism of Baal. These great ruins may remain 
for centuries yet to come, the wonder and admiration of trav- 
elers from all parts of the world, but when at last they have 
perished, as they shall perish, the kingdom of our God shall 
still be extending its conquests, for his word abideth forever. 

The last day's ride was over the magnificent macada- 
mized highway which the French built between Damascus 
and Beyroot, after the massacre of 1860, and which is intend- 
ed to serve as a military road for the rapid transportation 
of troops, in case it becomes necessary for the Christian 
powers of Europe to interpose against any future outbreak 
of Moslem fanaticism. The road crosses both the Lebanon 
and Anti-Lebanon ranges, winding up and down their 
steep ascents and descents, and reaching an elevation of 
eight thousand feet. It is a splendid piece of engineering, 
equaling that of the Simplon and other roads over the Alps, 
and is compact and firm to the very summit of the mount- 
ain. The numerous curves make an easy gradient ; and, as 



Baalbee and Beyroot. 



461 



we were anxious to reach Beyroot and get the mail from 
which we had been so long shut off, some of us galloped our 
horses down the entire descent of the mountain. 

We lunched the last day at Kerak jSTuh, a little village 
of Maronites and Greeks, which, though secluded in the 
mountains and unknown to fame, enjoys the proud distinc- 
tion of possessing the sepulcher of Grandfather Noah. The 
tomb is on the summit of a hill in the center of the village, 
and is sixty feet long. This, they say, was only half the 
height of the great patriarch, and, in order to get him in so 
small a compass, his body was doubled up. The tomb is 
held in great veneration, and is visited annually by thou- 
sands of pilgrims, the Moslems especially having great faith 
in these fables. We paid our respects to the grave of our 
venerable ancestor, and if we have not seen the tallest man, 
we have certainly seen the longest tomb in the world. 

Here at Kerak Nuh we met several Presbyterian missiona- 
ries, and among them a native preacher, whose sister, Loya 
Barida, has a singular and romantic history. Her parents 
were Maronites, a bigoted sect of the Bomanists found only 
in Syria, and she first heard of Christ when she was ten 
years old. Her parents allowed her to attend the Protest- 
ant school, but, finding that she was praying, they forbade 
her. She would creep under the windows and listen to the 
singing, thinking it the most beautiful thing she had 
ever heard. At last, finding that she was still praying^ 
her parents decided to marry her, but she resisted, where- 
upon they locked her up and greatly mistreated her. One 
day she found the door unlocked, and, escaping, made her 
way to Beyroot, where she found the house of Dr. Post, and 
told her story. He took her under his protection and edu- 
cated her, a Sunday-school at Philadelphia bearing all the 
expenses. She was finally sent to take charge of a school 
at Assouan, Egypt, where she met and married her hus- 



462 



The Levant 



band. In 1881, while spending vacation at Alexandria, 
the trouble there broke out and the Mohammedans raised 
the cry of " Down with the Christians ! " Loya and her hus- 
band fled to a ship and were taken to Italy, where they re- 
mained several months. They at last succeeded in getting 
on a vessel which took them to Philadelphia, where they 
landed penniless, friendless, and not understanding or 
speaking a word of English. They only knew the last 
name of the pastor of the Church whose Sunday-school had 
educated Loya, and with their little babe they went up and 
down the street repeating the name to every one they met. 
They at last attracted the attention of a policeman, who 
knew the minister and directed them to his house. He was 
not at home, and the girl who answered the door-bell, judg- 
ing from their ragged, dirty appearance that they were 
common beggars, sent them away. But the woman men- 
tioned the name " Loya," and after they had left it lingered 
in the memory of the servant, who had attended the Sun- 
day-school and was familiar with the name and history of 
the Syrian girl w T hom they had educated. It suddenly oc- 
curred to her that this might be the girl, and, running down 
the street to overtake them, she found poor Loya sitting on 
the side of the pavement weeping bitterly, for her last hope 
was gone and she and her husband were in despair. The 
servant found that she was correct in her surmise, took 
them back to the house, and when the clergyman came, he 
took charge of them and found a home for them and em- 
ployment for the man. Loya rapidly learned English, 
began telling her touching story in the churches of the 
East, and has been the inspiration of many a missionary 
meeting in the large cities of New England. She is still at 
work there, and has undertaken to raise funds to build a 
large girls' school in her native land. 

Syria was formerly identical with the Assyrian Empire, 



Baalbec and Beyroot. 



463 



which extended from the Black Sea to the Mediterranean, 
and the inhabitants were known in ancient times as Assyr- 
ians or, in the abbreviated form, Syrians. But at a later 
period these two names came to have different applications, 
and the Greeks applied the name Syria to the more western 
of these regions. So that the Syrians anciently spread con- 
siderably beyond the confines of modern Syria. Modern 
Syria, that portion of the country which is governed and 
cultivated by the Turks, is a long and narrow district on 
the eastern shore of the Mediterranean, extending from the 
highlands of the Taurus on the north to Egypt on the south. 
From time immemorial it has been inhabited by people of 
many different races, and its history has therefore been a 
singularly checkered one. The religions of the people have 
been as numerous as the tribes, and hence the country has 
been split up into small principalities and conflicting classes 
—the fruitful parent of civil war, anarchy, and confusion. 
The Moslem is the prevailing religion, this also being split 
up into various sects, the Druses being the most fanatical 
and intolerant. The various religions and sects live to- 
gether and practice their religious and superstitious rites in 
close proximity, hut there is no homogeneity among the 
people, nor do they regard each other with friendly feelings. 
Each in turn excommunicates the other, and there is no 
common bond of union between them. No other country 
in the world has such multiplicity of antagonistic races, 
and herein lies the great obstacle to their progress and ad- 
vancement in material civilization. They can never form 
one united, great people, but will always be a heterogeneous 
mass, the prey of stronger nations. And this is the more 
to be deplored from the fact that it is one of the fairest por- 
tions of the Turkish Empire, and there are parts of Syria 
which I have never seen surpassed anywhere for fertility. 
Beyroot is the most important city in Syria, and, next to 



464 



The Levant 



Damascus, the largest, having a population of about one 
hundred thousand. It is beautifully situated amidst gar- 
dens and orchards, with terraced hills and overhanging 
cliffs and retiring ravines, and is the most charming city of 
the Levant. It is a city of roses, and I saw no more beau- 
tiful gardens in the East than those of the Turkish bar- 
racks here. It is situated on the isthmus of a finely undu- 
lated promontory, and in the valley that lies between the 
promontory and the mountains spreads one of the richest 
and most varied tracts of verdure in the world. Twelve 
miles from the city, on reaching the summit of the mount- 
ains, a charming picture burst upon our view. Before us 
lay a succession of terraced hills and blooming valleys, 
among which nestled many airy villages, while farthest off 
was beautiful Beyroot, with its white houses seated on high 
cliffs looking seaward, or clustered on terraces and com- 
manding hill-tops, or half hid among retiring glens, while 
all around it lay the gardens and orchards. Beyond it 
was the purple sea dotted with sails, and over it rose the 
colored sky, and as I looked thrilling associations started 
into being of the old Phenician days; of the ancient Argo- 
sies that once dotted that sea and sailed along that shore; 
of the conquering armies of Greek, Eoman, Saracen, and Cru- 
sader, which once marched through those valleys and over 
those hills. Cyprus is almost in sight; yonder distant prom- 
ontory shelters Tripoli, while only a little further off lies 
classic Rhodes. Those same waters wash the prostrate 
towers of Tyre and Sidon, and once bore the great apostle 
of the Gentiles on his missionary tours. And in the theaters 
of Agrippa, which once adorned that fair city, Titus cele- 
brated his victories over Jerusalem, and his father's birth- 
day, by gladiatorial shows, in which the miserable captives 
of Zion perished in great numbers, fighting with wild beasts 
and with one another. 



Baalbec and Beyroot. 



465 



Christianity was early planted in Beyroot, and under the 
Christian Emperors it was one of the most celebrated seats of 
learning in the Roman Empire. It was entirely destroyed 
by an earthquake in 551, and for many centuries was a place 
of little importance. But within the last fifty years it has 
rapidly increased in population, commerce, and wealth. If 
a railroad should ever connect the head of the Mediterra- 
nean with the Euphrates and the Persian Gulf, and if Bey- 
root can attract the mighty tide of trade and travel to her 
door, she will become the Queen of the East, and take rank 
speedily among the great cities of the world. Whenever 
the Turkish Empire dissolves this road will be built, and 
w 7 hen it is built, it will revolutionize the Levant and the 
East. It would greatly shorten the road to India, and would 
be the great line of inter-communication between the mar- 
kets of Asia and Europe. London would then be within 
seven days of Calcutta, and the Far East would disappear. 
A crowded highway would be established between the 
Occident and the Orient, and the extremes of the world 
would be brought nearer together. 

There is a large European population at Beyroot, and 
many Christian institutions, making it the most pleasant 
place of residence in all the East. The work of Protestant 
missions began here in 1820. In 1830 there were but three 
Protestants in all the Turkish Empire, and during these 
years there was great persecution of Christians. In 1847 
a firman was issued recognizing Christianity, and in 1848 
the first church was organized. In 1846 the first boarding- 
school for girls was established at Beyroot. In the next ten 
years the work was greatly enlarged, and many successful 
enterprises were inaugurated. 

In 1860 the New Testament was translated in Arabic, 
and in 1865 the Old Testament was completed. There are 
now nineteen organized Churches in Syria, with one thou- 
30 



466 



TJie Levant 



sand four hundred and forty Church-members; and three 
thousand seven hundred and forty-six children in Sunday- 
schools. There are ninety-seven common schools connected 
with the missions, in which there are five thousand three 
hundred and seventy-four children. 

April 18th, at 7 : 30 p. m., we left Beyroot on the Austrian 
Lloyd steam-ship " Ceres," for Constantinople. It was a 
small steamer, and we were fearfully crowded. 



III. 

Tie LeYantine &a. 



HE " Levant " of the Italians, the "Orient" of the 
French, the " Morgenland " of the Germans, and the 
" Eothen " of Kinglake are all paraphrases of the East. 
The first term is applied more particularly to the lands on 
the eastern shores of the Mediterranean, which still divides 
the East from the West, and is called the Levantine Sea. 
The commerce of the early world found shelter in its ports, 
and for four thousand years the fleets and argosies of the 
nations, by oar and sail and steam, have sailed across its 
bright, blue waters. The cradle of civilization was further 
east, but these shores have been its nursery. 

Thy shores are empires, changed in all save thee, 
Greece, Egypt, Tyre, Assyria — where are they? 

Thy waters wasted them when they ere free, 
And many a tyrant since. They now obey 
The stranger, slave or savage — their decay 

Has dried up realms to nations — not so thou; 
Unchangeable, save to thy wild waves' play; 

Time writes no wrinkle on thy azure brow, 

Such as creation's dawn beheld thou rollest now! 

The Roman Empire embraced the entire coast of this sea, 
thus opening the way for the spread of Christianity, and 
over its waters the apostles carried the gospel to Europe and 
the West. But Islamism has overspread its eastern and 
southern shores, covering them with darkness, into which 
the light of the cross is but beginning again slowly to spread, 

(467) 




408 



The Levant. 



It is the most fascinating and fickle sea in the world, 
bright and blue, and fringed by the fairest and most memo- 
rial shores. It is seldom without a swell, and, like a little 
child, is either troublesome or asleep. It is a sea of ro- 
mance and nausea, and with so light a tide that it is practi- 
cally tideless. 

It requires seven days to make the trip from Beyroot to 
Constantinople, including the stops which the vessel makes; 
and if it is a coasting vessel, still longer time is taken. We 
had quite a parliament of nations on shipboard. There 
were Americans — we name ourselves first — English, French, 
Germans, Italians, Greeks, Turks, and Armenians. All 
except the first three named took deck passage, and they 
swarmed the forward and side decks in all ranks of rags 
and wretchedness. They furnished their own food and bed- 
ding, and cooked, ate, lived, slept, and suffered on deck. 
There, during the day, they gambled, smoked, gossiped, and 
quarreled, while during the night the children of the crowd 
gave a free concert to those of the passengers who were so 
unfortunate as to have state-rooms in their vicinity. Xor 
were dignitaries wanting, for we had a Eoman Catholic 
Archbishop, with his secretaries and servants, and, better 
than that, we had Dr. J. H. Vincent, the bishop of Chau- 
tauqua, with his wife and son. We greatly enjoyed the 
genial companionship of Dr. Vincent, and the admirable 
sermon which he preached on Sunday was greatly enjoyed 
by the crowd of Americans on board. 

The morning after leaving Beyroot we reached the island 
of Cyprus. We went ashore at Larnica, which is the prin- 
cipal sea-port and capital city, with a population of about 
ten thousand. We found little to interest us here, except 
a church called the Church of St. Lazarus, and which claims 
to contain the bones of Lazarus, the brother of Mary and 
Martha, whom Christ raised from the dead. I confess to 



The Levantine Sea, 



469 



have often wondered what became of Lazarus, and know no 
reason to doubt the tradition which I found here, that he 
came as a missionary to this island and died here. The 
church is a rather unique building, adorned with a number 
of somewhat striking pictures, one of which represents the 
raising of Lazarus. 

The island of Cyprus is one hundred and forty-eight miles 
long by forty wide, with a population of two hundred and 
ten thousand. It now belongs to the English Government. 
The principal products are wine, silk, some grain, salt, and 
olive-oil. Morocco leather is also tanned in considerable 
quantities, about ten thousand skins per annum being cured. 
It has always been celebrated for its beautiful women, who 
are said to be tall and shapely, with their hair hanging 
down their backs, but we saw none who answered this de- 
scription. A Greek writer says that he may trust himself 
with the beautiful women of all countries except those of 
Cyprus. 

Civilization began ages ago among these classic groves, 
and many remains are to be found of this old culture. Orig- 
inally peopled by the Phenicians, those great colonizers of 
the Mediterranean, it was afterward settled by the Greeks, 
the first of whom was Teucer, son of Telamon, who dedi- 
cated the splendid shrine at Paphos to Venus, the goddess 
of love. It became renowned for the worship of the deity, 
which was here celebrated with the most licentious rites, so 
that the very name, Cyprian, became a synonym for lewd- 
ness. 

Cyprus was one of the first countries in which Christian- 
ity was established. Here Barnabas was born, and here he 
came with Paul on that grand missionary tour which em- 
braced almost the whole of Asia Minor. But Paphos, where 
Elymas the Sorcerer was struck blind before the Proconsul, 
Sergius Paul us, and Salamis, where they first preached, ha ve 



470 



The Levant 



both disappeared, though Larnica stands near the site of 
ancient Salamis. In the time of the Romans the Jews 
formed a large part of the population cf the island, but now 
two-thirds of the population are Greeks. 

We merely touched at Ehodes, which stands at the en- 
trance to the archipelago, and was one of the most celebrated 
islands in classic history. At the entrance to the harbor 
stood the famous Colossus, which was one hundred and five 
feet high, and one of the seven wonders of the world. It 
was built by Charles of Lindus, in the second century, and 
was broken to pieces by an earthquake fifty-six years after 
being built. It took nine hundred camels to transport 
away the fragments. This island had additional interest in 
our eyes from the fact that it w r as for two centuries in the 
possession of the Knights of St. John, who, when they w r ere 
driven out of Palestine, landed here, and, having vanquished 
the Moslems and Greeks, made themselves masters of the 
city and island. The island has an area of four hundred 
and sixty square miles, and a population of thirty thousand. 
It has belonged to the Turkish Government since passing 
out of the hands of the Knights of St. John. 

The next morning, just before day, we passed " the isle 
that is called Patmos," and when we went on deck at sis 
o'clock w T e could just see, peeping above the horizon, the 
rocky summit of the little, bare bit of land where the 
beloved disciple was banished during the persecution under 
Domitian, and where the Apocalyptic vision was revealed 
to him. 

Several hours later w T e came in sight of the classic isle of 
Scio, the " Paradise of the Levant," and one of the seven 
birthplaces of Homer. The chief town is a beautiful, pict- 
uresque city of the same name, with good buildings and a 
number of spires of Greek churches. The houses are em- 
bowered in trees and shrubbery, and it looks as if it might 



The Levantine Sea. 



471 



have been the home of poets for all time. It stretches along 
the shore for two miles. In 1820 several thousand Chris- 
tians were massacred by the Mohammedans here, and in 
1881 a terrible earthquake almost destroyed the city and 
killed six thousand of the population. 

About the middle of the afternoon we arrived at Smyrna, 
which is the largest and best city of Asia Minor, and the 
main point of commercial contact between Europe and Asia. 
It is the only one of the seven Apocalyptic cities which has 
to-day any importance. It has a population of over two 
hundred thousand, and is a prosperous, well-built city. It 
is the emporium of the Greek trade of the Levant, has two 
railroads and a street-car line (think of a street-car in 
Smyrna!), fine hotels, cafes etc., and is altogether a city of 
some pretentions to elegance — at all events, it looked like an 
elegant city to us who had grown so accustomed to the dirty, 
low, flat-roofed houses of Oriental cities. As we drove 
through it in the evening we found much of the populace 
out-of-doors. There is a broad esplanade along the sea- 
front, and this was filled with elegantly dressed people, while 
the public gardens and cafes were thronged with men and 
women. The population is evidently a voluptuous, pleas- 
ure-loving one, and the Epicurean motto of " Carpe diem' 9 
is the one governing them. There are long lines of elegant 
stores along the narrow streets, denoting very considerable 
business. Figs are the principal product of Smyrna, and 
their export is very large. Here we again found the 
birthplace of Homer, and a grotto is pointed out where 
he is said to have written part of the Iliad. 

Smyrna is sacred in the eyes of the Christian world not 
only because it was the seat of one of the seven churches 
of Asia, but also because it was the scene of the martyrdom 
of Poly carp, one of the most distinguished of the early 
Christian fathers. He was the angel or bishop of the Church 



472 



The Levant 



at Smyrna to whom St. John addressed his epistle. In the 
year 166 he was brought before the Roman tribunal during 
one of the fearful persecutions of Christians in that age. 
The Proconsul, struck with his holy and reverend appear- 
ance and anxious to save his life, said to him, " Have pity 
on thine own great age. Swear, and I will release thee; 
reproach Christ." To which Poly carp made the historic 
answer, one of the grandest on record, " Eighty and six 
years have I served him, and he hath never wronged me; 
how then can I blaspheme my Lord who hath saved me?" 
And from amidst the flames his spirit went up to wear the 
martyr's crown. 

The tomb of Poly carp is on the summit of a high hill back 
of the city, where are also the acropolis and an old castle. 



IV. 

Epfesus, 



I have beheld th' Ephesian miracle- 
Its columns strew the wilderness, and dwell 
Th' hyena and the jackal in their shade. 

E were very glad to embrace the opportunity afforded 
\f|||J by a day's detention of our ship at Smyrna, to make 
an excursion to Ephesus, forty-eight miles distant. One of 
the few railroads in the Turkish dominions connects the two 
points, and a two-hours' ride over an excellent road brought 
us to the modern village of Ephesus. We passed through 
a fine country, with beautiful valleys and plains, beyond 
which rose a low range of mountains on either side, while 
the fertility of the country was attested by the wheat-fields, 
vineyards, and fig and olive orchards along the road. 

The modern representative of the once illustrious and 
wealthy city is a small Arab village with a few dwellings, 
two or three miserable little shops, the " Ephesian Hotel 
(a small caravansary), and about fifty inhabitants, who eke 
out a precarious subsistence by preying on the few travelers 
who visit the great ruins. Many of the houses are con- 
structed in part of material from these ruins, and in almost 
every mean hut are to be seen beautiful marble blocks, 
elaborately carved, broken capitals or elegantly fluted 
columns. Around some of the orchards are walls made of 
broken marble columns which once adorned the colonnade 
leading from the temple to the forum. The remains of an 
old Koman aqueduct, constructed from the columns of the 

(473) 



474 



The Levant. 



great Temple of Diana, run to the south of the village, and 
on the summit of these columns storks have built their great 
nests. One of these birds was on each column, making a 
striking combination of present life and the dead past. 
Neat the acropolis is the old church of St. John, constructed 
about 300 A.D., and destroyed by an earthquake in the 
year 1040. A magnificent archway is still standing, and 
great masses of the tiled roof, twenty feet thick, are lying 
all around. Xear this church are the ruins of the old Syn- 
odical convent, built at the time the church was, and con- 
verted by Sultan Suleiman into a mosque five hundred 
years ago. Here several of the early councils of the Church 
were held, and here Christianity once so flourished as to be 
a mother Church and the see of a metropolitan bishop. 
The columns of this temple, exquisitely fluted and carved, 
with magnificent Corinthian capitals, belonged to the pe- 
riphery of the Temple of Diana. The western front of the 
convent chapel is elaborately carved and finished, and is 
said to have been added by the Saracens in the eleventh 
century. In the same convent are two great granite 
columns and a magnificent composite capital which belonged 
to the ancient gymnasium of Ephesus. This is the only 
capital which has been preserved which represents the old 
symbol of eggs and darts forming wreaths. 

About half a mile west of these remains are the ruins of 
the great Temple of Diana, " whom all Asia worshiped/' one 
of the seven wonders of the world, and a fane whose mag- 
nificence was known throughout the earth. This temple 
was 425 feet long and 220 feet wide, being the largest of the 
Greek temples, and four times the size of the Parthenon at 
Athens. It was adorned with 127 columns of Parian mar- 
ble, each of a single shaft, and sixty feet high, and was 
magnificently decorated with sculptures by Praxiteles and 
a great painting by Apelles, as well as statues, pictures, and 



Epliesus. 



475 



mural embellishments by other artists. The interior so glit- 
tered with gold and precious stones that the door-keepers 
were accustomed to warn new-comers by crying, " Your 
eyes ! your eyes ! " The statue of Diana was of ivory ? 
furnished with exquisitely wrought golden ornaments, and 
was believed to have fallen down from heaven. This tem- 
ple was still the most notable thing about the city when St. 
Paul preached there in the year 54. But in the third cent- 
ury the city was sacked by the Goths, who burned the temple, 
though it was not entirely destroyed until a century later, 
when many of its columns and ornaments were taken by 
Constantino and Justinian to adorn Christian churches. 
The immense dome of Saint Sophia at Constantinople rises 
from the columns of green jasper which were once in this 
temple, and two pillars in the great cathedral at Pisa were 
also transported thence. 

For many years even the site of this magnificent temple 
was unknown, but it is now established beyond question. 
The location of the walls can be traced, and the interior is a 
great mass of magnificent fluted columns, broken stones, 
gorgeous capitals, and ruined architraves, overgrown with 
thistles and rank weeds.* 

Half a mile farther west, passing through fields of beard- 
ed wheat to reach it, are the ruins of the great stadium, 
which stood on the slopes of Mount Prion, once a magnifi- 
cent amphitheater, with seats sufficient to accommodate sev- 
enty thousand spectators. Here the pleasure-loving Ephe- 
sians assembled to witness games, matches, and contests in 
running and wrestling; here gladiators and condemned 

* Dr. Clark, in his Commentary on Acts xix. 24, falls into a sin- 
gular error. He says, speaking of this temple, "This grand build- 
ing remains almost entire to the present clay, and is now turned into 
a Turkish mosque! " It was entirely destroyed three centuries be- 
fore the birth of Mohammed. 



476 



prisoners fought with wild beasts, and here it is probable that 
Paul himself fought with beasts on one occasion. The am- 
phitheater is still there, the area three-quarters of a mile 
long may still be traced, the places w T here the tiers of seats 
rose are on either side, and the walls separating the race- 
track from the space reserved for the wrestlers is as though 
built but a few years ago. But racers, gladiators, boxers, 
and spectators are all like the dust beneath our feet, and the 
great thistles and wild asparagus almost barred our prog- 
ress. But enough remains to attest the grandeur which 
once marked the city, and to show the extent of this great 
arena. The city lay in a beautiful valley about a mile 
wide, and from the great temple to the sea was about three 
miles. The plain stretched far to the east of the temple, 
and the magnificent building was visible for a great dis- 
tance, being the first sight that caught the eye of the traveler. 
The river Cayster flowed to the north of the city, and was 
then quite a large stream, though now but little more than 
a brook. 

At the western end of the stadium, crowning a slight 
elevation, rose the great temple of Jupiter Serapeum, where 
a hundred oxen were sacrificed on a certain day, annually. 
jSorth of this temple are the remains of a palace, identified 
as that of the Town Clerk who took sides with Paul and 
his companions, and quieted the great uproar which had 
arisen in the theater. This theater lay further to the south 
on the sides of a hill which arose in the center of the city, 
and its ruins are the best preserved of any in the plain. It 
w T as with mingled emotions that we clambered over these 
ruins and found ourselves within the very theater where 
Demetrius and his companions had so excited the multi- 
tude against Paul. It was an immense building, and much 
of the great proscenium is still intact. Part of the walls 
are standing on the south side, and splendid columns, bro- 



Ephesas. 



417 



ken walls, and fragments of capitals and bases, all superbly 
carved and finished in the highest style of Greek art, lay 
in great piles over which I could with difficulty clamber. 
This is said to have been one of the largest theaters in the 
world, and could seat fifty thousand persons. 

An interesting relic, lying between the theater and the 
stadium, is a great white marble monolith, evidently very 
ancient, half buried in the ground, which was originally an 
olive-oil mill, but which tradition says w T as converted by 
the Apostle John into a baptismal font. It is round, slight- 
ly depressed in the center, and about fifteen feet in diame- 
ter. If it was used by John as a baptismal font, it is very 
certain that immersion could not have been performed in it. 
At the foot of the hills and south of the theater was the 
Temple of Claudius, erected by the Greeks in honor of the 
Emperor Claudius. Not much of this is left, but the most 
beautifully carved marble monolith I have ever seen, which 
evidently stood at the corner of the portico and is twenty 
feet high, lies prone on the ground, and broken brackets, 
eaves, capitals, etc., show the former beauty of the building. 
Not far from this was the great forum, which was larger 
even than the Koman forum, though it is not nearly so well 
preserved, all the columns having been removed and the 
pavement being probably buried under many feet of earth. 

We rode on over broken architraves, fluted columns, 
ruined arches, and splendid capitals, amidst which the tall 
wheat waved, to the Opisolepria Valley* where the Ama- 
zons lived and had their own forum and theater. Here the 
city extended half-way up the side of the mountain, having 
had in its palmy days over a million of inhabitants. It was 
a great surprise to find the ruins so extensive and on such 
a scale of magnificence, and no one who sees them can fail 
to be impressed with the ancient grandeur of the city. We 
rode fully ten miles over these ruins, which are unmatched, 



478 



The Levant 



so far as I have seen, by those of any ancient city except 
Delhi, and which are the remains of all ages from the Cy- 
clops to the Saracens. 

The Sacred Road, which led from the Temple of Diana, 
in the southern part of the city, to the forum and the 
theater, was a broad, paved colonnade, with magnificent 
marble columns, now fallen and broken along the whole 
way, a distance of about two miles. On either side of this 
colonnade was the necropolis, and many tombs and sarcopha- 
gi are still to be seen. The Magnesian Gate, about half-way 
between the termini, was a magnificent entrance, now broken 
and ruined. Along this way, the tomb of St. Luke is 
pointed out, a ruined circular mausoleum of marble, on one 
of the slabs of which there are the figures of an ox and a 
cross — ready for service or sacrifice. On a high eminence, 
overlooking the city and near the sea, is a ruined, castel- 
lated building which is pointed out as the prison where 
Paul was once confined, though there is no record of Paul 
ever having been a prisoner at Ephesus. 

Ephesus was the most magnificent city of the Levant, 
the great emporium of Asia Minor; opulent and prosper- 
ous, celebrated no less for its commerce and the grandeur 
of its public buildings than for its voluptuousness and the 
refinements of its civilization. It was one of the cradles 
of Hellenic mythology, the metropolis of the Ionian Con- 
federacy, a great school of art, and, next to Jerusalem, the 
holiest of Christian cities. It was the reputed birth- 
place of Apollo and Diana ; the place of the metamorpho- 
sis of the Sphinx into a reed; the lurking-place of Pan; a 
chief seat of the Amazons, where Hercules defeated them 
and they took refuge in the Temple of Diana; and the city 
of Callinus and Musaeus, Parrhasius and Heraclitus, Apel- 
les and Evenor, and one of the reputed birthplaces of 
Homer 



Ephesus. 



479 



But this city, once so famous and so great, is now desolate 
and forsaken, with a character of desolation all its own. 
The Epistle to the Ephesians is read throughout the world, 
but there is no one in Ephesus to read it. The candlestick 
has been removed, and the Church which was founded by 
Paul and ministered to by John lives only in the record of 
the past. 



Constantinople, 



©UR sail through the Grecian Isles and then through 
the Hellespont was like a trip to fairy-land, for every 
wave of the classic JEgean and every foot of her shores are 
full of memories. Scio and Mitylene were passed in the 
night, and morning brought us to Assos, where " burning 
Sappho loved and sang." Soon there came into view the 
peaks of Ida, where Paris adjudged to Venus the prize of 
beauty, and where Homer represents Jove as seated to 
watch the movements of the Greek and Trojan armies, and 
where Juno approached him in a purple cloud from Lect- 
um. Just before entering the Hellespont we passed the 
site of ancient Troas, where Eutychus, falling asleep 
while Paul was preaching, "fell from the third loft and 
was taken up dead," but was restored to life by the apostle. 
It was here also that Paul left his cloak, which he wrote 
to Timothy to bring him when he was in the Mamertine 
prison at Rome. To the left lay the island of Tenedos, 
where the Greeks made their wooden horse, and behind 
which they concealed their fleet. As we entered the Hel- 
lespont, the name reminded us of the first legendary ship 
that ever plowed those classic waters — when Jason and his 
fifty Grecian heroes sailed in the "Argo " for Colchis to 
bring; back the golden fleece of the wondrous ram with 
wings which bore Phryxus and Helle across the Euxine. 
And from the deck of their ship they saw the plain of Troy, 
which, a generation later, their descendants were to make 
(480) 



Constantinople. 



481 



illustrious with their heroic deeds while this globe remains. 
So we could see the site of ancient Illium, where Achilles 
and Ajax, Ulysses and Agamemnon gave undying glory to 
the most famed of battle-fields. The tombs of Achilles and 
Hector are still pointed out, and the river Scamander still 
winds its sluggish way across the plain. 

Beyond the town of Dardanelles we passed the Cape of 
Abydos, where Xerxes built his bridge of boats, and a large 
tumulus is pointed out as the place where he sat during the 
passage of the army. It was here also that Leander used 
to swim across to see his beloved Hero — a feat which By- 
ron tells us he also successfully accomplished. This historic 
spot is also memorable as being the place where the Turks 
first raised the crescent in Europe. 

The ancient Hellespont, now called the Dardanelles, av- 
erages about two miles in width and is forty-five miles long, 
connecting the JEgean Sea with the Sea of Marmora. It 
separates Europe from Asia, and has always been a stream 
associated with the most interesting historic and classic in- 
cidents. It was the late Dr. Beadle, of Philadelphia, who, 
speaking to a lady of the beauty of the Dardanelles, received 
the reply: " O yes; I know them well. They are intimate 
friends of mine ! " It was doubtless a relative of this lady 
who, being asked, on her return from Italy, if she had seen 
the Lion of St. Mark, replied: " O yes; we arrived just in 
time to see the noble creature fed ! " 

The next morning the domes and minarets of magnificent 
Stamboul came in sight, and soon Constantinople was re- 
vealed in all its matchless beauty and splendor. The shin- 
ing waters that almost surround the city, the richly mingled 
mass of palaces and gardens and stately towers, the golden 
minarets and purple domes and gleaming crescents, and 
the majestic walls and fortresses that surround the gor- 
geously crowded hill, when seen in the dancing sunlight as 
31 



482 



Tlie Levant. 



I saw them that morning, make a picture never to be for- 
gotten. 

Constantinople is really a double city, Stamboul, the 
Turkish city, being separated from Pera, the European 
city, by the Golden Horn, a tongue of water which is only 
a quarter of a mile wide and seven miles long, running 
from the Sea of Marmora up into the land and bordered by 
arsenals, palaces, mosques, and store-houses. All the fleets 
of Europe might here lie at anchor among the very streets 
of the city. The Bosporus runs to the east of Pera, con- 
necting the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmora and sepa- 
rating Europe from Asia. Across the Bosporus, in Asia, 
lies Scutari, the old Chalcedon. There the heroes of the 
Crimea lie, and there Florence Nightingale taught us how 
divine a spirit may wear mortal shape, as she became a 
ministering angel to the sufferers. 

No city in the world has such a magnificent situation or 
such remarkable water approaches as Constantinople. It 
is accessible only through the long, narrow Dardanelles on 
the one side and the Bosporus on the other, and sits like a 
queen holding the key of the Levant. The population of 
the city is about a million, but if it were under a Christian 
Government it would rival London. The Turkish Govern- 
ment is the most effete, inefficient, and irresponsible among 
civilized nations, and the sooner it goes to pieces, and the 
Empire is dismembered, the better for the world. 

Pera occupies the whole face of the northern shore, look- 
ing down upon the Golden Horn and out upon the Bospo- 
rus. It has many magnificent buildings and long lines of 
elegant stores, but the streets are narrow and dirty. Here 
all the Europeans, with their respective embassies and con- 
sulates, live, and here are all the hotels. It w T as a pleasure 
to find myself at last on European soil, even though in a 
semi-Oriental city. 



Constantinople, 



483 



Constantinople is the paradise of dogs, and thousands of 
ownerless curs, " of high and low degree," throng the streets. 
It is said that there are more dogs in Constantinople than 
in any other city in the world, and I could well believe it, 
for I counted over a hundred in walking three squares. 
They are said to be divided into guilds, and to have the city 
apportioned out. If a dog strays into a quarter belonging 
to another guild, he is at once set upon, killed, and eaten by 
the dogs owning that ward. The residents of Constantino- 
ple are responsible for this story, but I am not disposed to 
doubt it after seeing the crowds of lean, hungry-looking, 
ill-favored canines who infest every quarter of the city. 

The most interesting place to me in Constantinople was 
the Mosque of St. Sophia, the largest and most magnificent 
mosque in the world. Originally a Christian church, hav- 
ing been built by Constantine in 325 and rebuilt by J ustin- 
ian in 532, it was transformed into a mosque by Moham- 
med II. in 1453. It is built of light brick, but lined 
throughout with colored marble, and is a very large and 
elaborate structure. It is in the form of a cross, three hun- 
dred and fifty feet long and two hundred and thirty-six feet 
wide, while the great central dome is one hundred and 
eighty-sis feet high and one hundred and seven feet in diam- 
eter. The ceiling and the arches are beautifully inlaid with 
gilt and mosaic work, and it is adorned with columns and 
marbles from all portions of the East. Eight great red 
porphyry columns are from Baalbec ; sixteen green jasper 
columns are from the Temple of Diana, at Ephesus; some 
of the marble columns are said to have come from Solo- 
mon's Temple; and other columns are from various other 
temples. On four sides of the dome are large figures of 
cherubim, their faces covered w 7 ith their w r ings. Nearly 
under the center of the dome is an old cistern, covered 
with a piece of red porphyry, which came from Jacob's 



484 



The Levant. 



Well. "When this peerless building was finished, Justinian 
exclaimed: ''.Solomon, I have excelled thee!" 

On the day that this church was taken by the Turks and 
transformed into a mosque, there was a great massacre of 
Christians in the building, and tradition says that the Sul- 
tan rode in on horseback, and, dipping his hand in their 
blood, left the impress upon one of the columns, where it is 
still shown. Every Friday the high-priest preaches with 
an unsheathed sword in his hand, thus signifying that the 
Church has been conquered. On one of the half-domes the 
head of Christ is distinctly traceable on the gilt, although 
the Mohammedans have used every effort to efface it. On 
either side of the altar are great wax candles twenty feet 
high and thirty inches in circumference, the largest can- 
dles in the world. 

Over the great door of the mosque is an open Bible in 
gilt with a dove over it, the Bible having this inscription 
in Greek: " I am the door. By me, if any man will enter 
in. he shall find pasture." There are a number of other 
indications left that this was once a Christian church. On 
some of the other doors they have tried to destroy the cross 
which was once there, having taken off the central beam 
and left the cross-beam — a fitting illustration of the man- 
ner in which Mohammedanism takes from Christianity its 
great central truths. 

In the Ar-Meidan, or horse-market, an open space in old 
Stamboul not far from St. Sophia, and which was a part of 
the old Hippodrome, where anciently, amid the shouts of 
frantic crowds, the jeweled chariots flew before the Byzan- 
tine Emperors, stand three historic columns. The first is an 
Egyptian obelisk which was brought from the Temple of the 
Sun, at Thebes, by Theodosius the Great,Jn A.D. 390. It 
is one cf the oldest monuments in existence, having been 
quarried three centuries before Abraham was driven by 



Constantinople. 



485 



famine into Egypt. It bears the cartouch of the second 
Pharaoh, whose reign was in that mystic age when civili- 
zation began in the valley of the Nile. 

The second is a serpentine column of bronze or copper 
from the oracle of Apollo, at Delphi. Formerly, three 
serpents' heads at the summit supported the golden tripod 
of the Pythia, the maiden priestess of Apollo, when she 
gave the inspired oracle to the poets. This was erected by 
the Greeks four hundred and seventy-five years before 
Christ, in commemoration of the victory gained at Platae 
over the Persians. On the base of the column are the 
names of all the cities that took part in the battle. The 
consecrated tripod was carried off by the Phocians in the 
holy war, and when Constantine made his capital a museum 
of priceless treasures from all lands, he brought this pillar 
thither, and set it up where it might see " the entire uni- 
verse pass by between walls of silk." 

The third monument is built of separate stones, and was 
erected by Constantine as a memorial of himself. 

The Mosque Aionep, in the western part of the city, 
has been endowed, for one hundred years, for the purpose 
of feeding the dogs in that quarter. Every Friday all the 
dogs assemble and are fed by the priests. 

The bazaars of Constantinople are the finest and most at- 
tractive in the world. These are large fire-proof buildings, 
lighted from above, with vaulted ceilings, inclosing several 
covered streets. Here hundreds of turbaned Turks sit 
cross-legged in their little shops and retail their wares to 
throng3 of customers. Turbaned Orientals, of all descrip- 
tions, veiled women, porters, dervishes, bustling Europeans, 
and smoking Turks make a picturesque throng which is con- 
tinually surging through these Eastern microcosms. 

A ride on the Bosporus ended my experiences in Con- 
stantinople. The Bosporus is the most beautiful, as it is 



486 



The Levant 



the most classic, stream in the world. While one legend 
connects it with the theft of Europa, when Jupiter assumed 
the form of a snow-white bull and bore the maiden across 
the narrow strait to the continent which was henceforth 
called by her name, another story refers the name to 
the history of lo, who, when transformed into a heifer by 
Juno, swam across these waters to avoid her tormentor. 
Temples to Serapis and Jupiter were erected on either 
coast, and its banks are flowered with lovely legends which 
have delighted the world for centuries. 

The stream, reaching from the Marmora to the Black 
Sea, is twenty-five miles long, and from half a mile to two 
miles wide. Its steep shores are wooded to the water's 
edge, and they are studded with the ruins of all ages, which 
are curiously mingled with magnificent modern palaces. 
An almost continual village runs from Pera to Buyukdere, 
the green hillocks being crowned with palaces and villas, 
while clustering at the foot of the hills are beautiful little 
suburban towns. The Sultan has a number of palaces 
along these shores, and all the foreign embassadors have 
their summer residences here, while the wealthy merchants 
and business men of Constantinople have built their villas 
on many of the heights. Beautiful gardens, parks, lawns, 
and terraces, shaded with trellised vines, are everywhere 
crowning the hills and filling the valleys, and neither the 
Hudson nor the Rhine can show so charming a combination 
where nature and art have united to beautify. Excursion 
steamers ply up and down these waters, affording easy and 
cheap transit. 

On one of the most charming heights of this stream stands 
Robert College, an institution which owes its existence 
principally to the benefactions of Christopher R. Robert, 
and which was founded in 1863 under the auspices of the 
American Board. Since its organization it has educated 



Constantinople* 



487 



more than a thousand young men, and has now seventeen 
professors and tutors, with two hundred and fifty students, 
representing twelve nationalities. It was a great pleasure 
to go through the magnificent buildings of this institution, 
which, with the sixteen acres belonging to them, are valued 
at one hundred and fifty thousand dollars. The institution 
should have an endowment of at least four hundred thou- 
sand dollars. It is accomplishing a noble work among the 
Bulgarians and Armenians, and will, in time, be a center of 
influence over all the East. 

The work of missions in Turkey has been slow, though 
there has been quite a revival of evangelical religion among 
the Armenian population. Fifty years ago the Kev~ Will- 
iam Goodell and wife came to Constantinople, the first 
Christian missionaries from America. Others joined them 
from time to time, and the work grew. Previous to 1856 
a Mohammedan, of Turkish birth, who became a Christian, 
rendered himself liable to the death-penalty; but in that 
year this decree was revoked, and liberty of conscience and 
religion was guaranteed to all the subjects of the Sultan. 
Since then the outlook has been more hopeful, and, while 
in 1847 there were only about five hundred Protestants 
throughout the Turkish dominions, there are now some 
twenty thousand. The American Board, Baptists, Disci- 
ples, Quakers, and Methodist Episcopals now have missions 
in Constantinople, and " the races once enlightened by 
Chrysostom, Gregory, and Athanasius require again the 
living word, and are anxious to raise their fallen candle- 
stick." 

Who knows but that the day may be near when St. So- 
phia shall replace the cross upon her proud dome, and 
when St. Irene, which once echoed to the eloquence of 
"John, the golden-mouthed," shall again be a Christian 
temple? I verily believe the opportunity is ripe for an 



488 



The Levant. 



occupancy of the Ottoman Empire by the forces of mission- 
ary enterprise, and, if we push the battle, God will give us 
the victory. 

Year by year and sun by sun 
Grows the work by Christ begun ; 
Life by life and soul by soul 
Hastes the bright millennial goal ; 
Land by land and sea by sea 
Yields the shout of victory. 



Appendix. 



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(401) 



JAPANESE NOTES. 



The American Bible Society. 

A special agency of this Society was established in Japan in 
1S76, with Rev. L. H. Gulick, M.D., in charge. It was at first 
combined with China, but in 1881 Dr. Gulick was assigned to the 
latter field, and Rev. Henry Loornis appointed to the charge of the 
work in Japan. This field now includes both Corea and the Loo- 
choo Islands. The accompanying reports will show in part the 
amount of work that has been done in Japan, and the growth from 
year to year. Only a small part of the Bible now remains to be 
published. It has already been translated, and requires but a small 
amount of revision before it will be ready for the press.' It is ex- 
pected that the whole will be completed before the first of June or 
July next. 

This society has prepared and published a China-Corean version 
of the Gospels and Acts, and a Corean translation of the Gospel of 
Mark. A Corean translation of the Gospel of Luke has been made, 
and is ready for publication when needed. 



Report of Scriptures Manufactured and Circulated by the 
A. B. S. in Japan. 



Year. 


MANUFACTURED. 


ISSUED. 


Bibles. 


Testam'ts. 


Parts. 


Total. 


Bibles. 


Testani'ts. 


Parts. 


Total. 


Pages. 


1874 






13.450 
9.000 
13.300 
24.050 
25.^29 
19.408 
69.642 
112.927 
7.860 
6.680 
45.900 
9.9^4 
13.342 


13.450 
9.000 
13,300 
24.050 
25^829 
19.40^ 
76.163 
118.096 
16.491 
18.106 
63,103 
25.408 
28.078 






7,500 
12.500 

4,500 
12,286 
20,580 
23,945 
59,749 
62.524 
28,211 
18,098 
21.426 
19.598 
24.597 


7.500 
12.500 

4,500 
13.600 
22,631 
26,121 
65,973 
68,798 
38,439 
30.257 
35.771 
84.360 
41,345 


757.500 
1.378.5C0 
499.500 
1.843.492 
4,009,941 
4.791.463 
10.203.723 
10.899,864 
10.394.389 
16,137.736 
14.715.172 
12.657.701 
17.946.712 


1875 










1876 










1S77 






3.54 
209 
890 
128 
185 
403 
592 
675 
770 


976 
1.697 
1.967 
5,834 
6.146 
10.043 
11.756 
13.753 
12.807 
15.453 














1880 




6.521 
5.169 
8,631 
11.256 
16.956 
12.051 
14,736 


1881 

1882 .... 




1883 
1884 , 


170 
247 

403 


1885 

1886 


829 


75,320 


371.312^ 450,482 


4.044 


80.432 1 315.514 


401.795 


106.235.093 



(492) 



Appendix. 



493 



1874. Value of books, $167; cash received . 1875. Value 

of books, ; cash received, . 1876. Value of books, 



$400; cash received, $400, 1877. Value of books, $819.44; cash 
received, $567.38. 1878. Value of books, $1,097.46; cash received, 
$596. 1879. Value of books, $882.05; cash received, $431.41. 
1880. Value of books, $1,967.78; cash received, $628.60. 1881. 
Value of books, $2,533.98; cash received, $1,769.32. 1882. Value 
of books, $3,129.25; cash received, $1,988.25. 1883. Value of books, 
$4,739.90; cash received, $4,071.18. 1884. Value of books, $8,107. 
51; cash received, $5,313.65. 1885. Value of books, $6,614.18; 
cash received, $6,571.17. 1886. Value of books, $6,258.62; cash 
received, $7,247.70. Total value of books, $36,717.17; total cash 
received, $29,584.66. 

Japan Agency. 



1879 
3880 
1881 
1882 
1883 
1884 
1885 
1886 

I.-cr. 

1886* 



4,200 
5,000 
6,842 
10,815 
16,117 
18,226 
24,919 



1400 
1,748 

2,881' 
4,831 
5,505 
6,468 

933 



15,000 
19,391 
29,989 
51,525 
56,260 
68^20 

11,860 



G.T.862 
B. 718 



135 
2,000 
4,038 



9^73 
11,102 
15,613 

4.511 



5,000 
16,000 
12,825 
12,675 
11,848 
18,593 
23,706 

5,113 



$1,200 00 
1,933 54 
3,201 62 
4,672 60 
6,298 18 
6,992 46 

694 2 S. 



$1,400 00 
1,017 46 
1,796 05 
2,343 85 
2,922 13 
4,031 96 



$ 325 00 
583 30 
1,154 45 
1,619 56 
2,343 56 
3,074 08 



The BxbIxE in Japan. 

There are more than one hundred members of the Scripture-read- 
ers' Union, at Kochi, and they are accustomed to meet the first Sab- 
bath of every month for prayer, Bible-reading, conversation, and ad- 
dresses on themes suggested by their study. 

These gatherings have proved so pleasant and profitable that the 
members have resolved that from this time they will endeavor to 
convince all the people of the importance of studying the Word of 
God. 

For the purpose of arousing the attention of others to this subject, 
a general meeting was decided upon to be held at the largest thea- 
ter in town. The day before there was a heavy storm, and it con- 
tinued until two o'clock of the day on which the gathering was to 
take place. This made the members of the Union very anxious, as 



494 



Appendix* 



they feared the meeting would be a failure. But just before the 
time appointed for the gathering the sky became clear, and about 
six hundred persons assembled. All seemed to be anxious to hear 
and to learn about the best way to become acquainted with the will 
of God. 

The first address was on the topic, " The Bible the Bread of Life/' 
The second was, u The Scriptures Are a Revelation from God." The 
third was, " The Necessity of Studying the Bible." The fourth was, 
" On the Power of Faith. v 

The audience was very quiet and attentive, arid the exercises were 
continued until eleven o'clock at night. The contrast between this 
and the Buddhist or political gatherings was very noticeable, as on 
such occasions there is often such noise and disturbance as to break 
up or defeat the object of the meeting. That Christian assemblies are 
so well attended and peaceable is felt to be an evidence of God's 
presence and blessing. The hearts of the believers are full of grati- 
tude for such evidence of divine favor. 

A Japanese nobleman living in Tokio is very fond of poetry, and 
was surprised to hear that among Christian people the most popular 
themes are of a joyful and inspiring character, and in this respect 
almost precisely the opposite of heathen poems. 

At his request to see some specimens of such poetry, he was shown 
the Book of Psalms. He looked at it with astonishment, and said, 
" This is truly wonderful, and a perfect treasure of new and beautiful 
thoughts.'' He read it with wonder and delight, and begged to take 
the copy with him, that he might feast upon it at his leisure. 

Previous to this time he had refused to allow his daughter to re- 
ceive Christian baptism, but upon reading the Psalms his prejudice 
was removed, and he has consented to her public avowal of her faith 
in Christ. H. Locons, Agent A. B. S. 

Yokohama, Japan, September 2S. 1SS7. 

The Revival ox the "Maeiox." 

In the first chapter on Japan there is an account of a meeting 
which Mr, Palmore and I held in connection with Mr. Loomis on the 
man-of-war, 1 Marion.' The meeting continued after we left, and re- 
sulted in great good. A letter just received from Mr. Loomis says: 

"The U. S. man-of-war Marion left Yokohama on the 3d of 
September for Panama, where the crew will be discharged, and either 
return to their homes or re-enlist for aiuther cruise. 



Appendix. 



495 



" God has greatly blessed the men on board of this ship, and there 
is a good band of earnest Christian men trying to help each other 
and hold up the banner of Jesus among their comrades. This is 
largely due to the prayers and godly example of their devoted cap- 
tain, as well as to the efforts made by the Christians in Yokohama. 
Between twenty and thirty are now banded together as a Christian 
Association, and the character of the whole crew has been greatly 
changed for the better. Two of the recent converts look forward to 
becoming preachers of the gospel. 

" One young man is the son of a widow in New York, and was 
brought up in the midst of wealth and comfort. He is a college 
graduate, and had occupied a good position in business, but had fallen 
into bad habits and lost both his place and self-respect. To get 
away from his old haunts and habits he enlisted in the navy. He 
has been truly converted, and now goes back to be a comfort and 
help to his devoted and happy mother. This same Christian mother 
has formerly been opposed to the work of Foreign Missions, but since 
her own son has found the Saviour in a mission-field, she has learned 
that God will bless the labors of his servants in distant fields as well 
as in the home land. One young convert received a letter from his 
parents in which they said that the account of his conversion had 
been the means of bringing both of them to an acceptance of Christ 
as their Saviour." 

The following is the copy of a letter received from Captain Miller 
just before his departure: 

"Dear Mr. Loomis : I am very sorry to hear of your continued ill- 
ness. We would be glad to see you on board. I have to thank you 
for another large package of papers for distribution on board. The 
papers which you have been so kind as to send us from time to time 
have contributed a great comfort to the men, and I feel sure have 
been the means of doing great good. Please accept our thanks for 
them. We shall not forget your kindness and that of others, in com- 
ing off to the ship to hold meetings for the men, and for the entertain- 
ments given them on shore we are especially thankful. Our thanks 
are especially due to you, for the greater part of the labor of arrang- 
ing, etc., fell upon you. May God bless and preserve you and yours 
and all the others in Yokohama who have been so kind to the 'Ma- 
rion's' crew! Sincerely yours, Merill Miller. 

"U. S. S. 'Marion,' Yokohama, August 31, 1887." 



496 



Appendix. 



AN ORIGINAL POEM, 

BY A JAPANESE SCHOOL-GIKL. 

O Christ, thou earnest to earth for me, 
And from that blessed home didst come: 

That I mv Father's face might see, 
And make his heart my happy home. 

• Thy hands and feet upon the cross 

"Were nailed, thy heart was broken there, 

let me count all things but loss, 
If thus I may be pure and fair. 

1 know I've naught that worthy is 

A grateful offering, Lord, to bring; 
In thee alone I find my bliss, 

While to the blood-stained cross I cling. 

O how I long, I long to be 

Thine, wholly thine for evermore! 

And in the glad eternity 

To worship on the golden shore. 

Ming Ohaea. 



MISSION-WORK IN CHINA. 



NAME OF SOCIETY. 



Loudon Mission. Society. 

A. B. C. IT. M 

American Bapt., North. 
Am. Protest. Episcopal. 



(for. 



MISSIONARIES 



1807 
1830 
1834 
1835 
1838 
1843 
1844 
1845 
1847 
1847 
1847 
1847 
1847 
1847 
1848 
1850 
1852 
1858 
1858 
1860 
1860 
1864 



1868 



1871 
1874 
1876 
1878 
1882 
1884 
1885 
1886 
1886 







S3 






1 










5 




a 




to 
a 


S 


— 




— - 

25 


IS 


7 


28 


25 


12 


9 


8 


7 


ll 


9 


3 


43 


39 


13 


14 


3 




24 


23 


2 


15 


14 


1 


31 


31 


12 


1 


1 


1 


ll 


9 


5 


21 


19 




22 


16 


7 


3 


3 




8 


7 


14 


1 


1 


4 


2l 


6 


4 




5 


2 






3 


5 


4 






5 


7 


3 






40 


55 




2 






3 




S 


6 


4 


s 


3 




2 


2 




4 


2 




8 


4 




2 


2 




5 


5 




1 






2 






3 






1 


1 




1 


I 




3 




2 


446 


315 


164 



2,515 
994 
2,408 
18, 
54^ 
1,611 
3,312 
60 
22; 



2,162 
46 



461 



2,103 CO 



3,121 10 
68 00 
GOO 00 



679 
784 



200 
653 



* 1,524 74 
'j940"00 

' 2,0*08 42 



54 



1,186 



142 



Brit, and For. Bible So. 

Church Miss. Society 

English Baptist 

Methodist Episcopal 

Seventh-day Baptist 

Am. Baptist, South 

Basel Mission 

English Presbyterian 

Rhenish Mission 

M. E. C, South f 

Berlin Found. Hospital 
Wesleyan Miss. Society. 
Am. Reformed (Dutch;.. 

Woman's Union Miss 

Methodist New Connex. 
Society Pro. Female Ed. 
United Pres. (Scotch).... 
China Inland Mission.... 
Nat. Bible So. (Scotland) 
United M. Free Church 

Am. Pres., South 

Irish Presbyterian 

Canadian Presbyterian. 
Society Propaga. Gospel 
American Bible Society 
Estab. Church of Scot- 
Berlin Mission 

Gen. Prot. Evang. Soc... 

Bible Christians 

For. Christ. Miss. Soc... 
Book and Tract Society. 

Society of Friends 

Independent Workers... 

Total ]446 315 164 9251140 1296 28.079 1 10,579' $19,092 45 



72J 
13 
16 
82 
218 
17 
136 



3,052 
1,235 
1,433 
384 
4,368 



306 
1,314 



297 
44 



1,128 



30 
119 



1,711 



175 
801 
1,804 



274 
*207 



5,500 00 



491 23 
500 SO 
1,472 00 



408 13 



300 00 
34 00 



* Churches of Fokien alone, t Statistics up to November 1, 1887. 

t This includes contributions from foreign members. Native members paid $192 of this amount. 

(497) 



MISSIONS AND MISSION-WORK IN INDIA. 



31 



Baptist Missionary Society 

London Missionary Society 

American Board. 

Church of England Society 

Gospel Propagation Society 

Wesley an Missionary Society 

General Baptist Missionary Society 

Church of Scotland 

Free Church of Scotland 

American Presbyterian Mission 

Basel Missionary Society 

American Baptist Missionary Union 

American Free Baptist Mission..... 

Go-sner's Evangelical Lutheran Mission 

Leipsig Missionary Society 

Irish Presbyterian Mission 

M elsh Calvinistic Methodist Mission 

American Evangelical Lutheran Mission.... 

American Reformed Church 

Episcopal Moravian Mission 

American Union Presbyterian Church 

Methodist Episcopal Church 

Union Presbyterian Church of Scotland 

Danish Evangelical Lutheran Mission 

Presbyterian^Church of England 

Hermann-burg Evangelical Lutheran Miss. 

Friends' Foreign Mission Association 

Indian Home Mission 

American-German Evangelical Mi ; s. Soc'y 

Canadian Baptist Missionary Society .. 

Scotch Episcopal Church ! *. 

Original Secession Church of Scotland 

Canadian Presbyterian Mission 

Swedish Evangelical Missionary Society 

American Free Methodist Mission 

Disciples' Mission 

Private Missions, etc 



Total.. 







— 


1 




1 

3 

i 
ta 

o 


r 

i 

i i 


S = 
*| < 


' • 1 


"3 
3 
g 

a 




£ " 
— 







6 


- ~ 

1793 


43 


50 


10.000 


4.000 


1798 


47 


44 


55.029 


6.221 


i8ia 


24 




14.475 


4.626 


1814 


115 


132 


101.833 


23.289 


1817 


53 


71 


90,888 


21.996 


1817 


44 


I 9 


4:200 


1,800 


1^22 


8 


9 


3.393 


1.259 


1828 


17 


8 


1.806 


896 


1828 


82 


10 


L'f'8 


1.527 


1834 


86 


12 


1.743 


1,000 


1834 


79 


10 


8,513 


4.445 


1S36 


27 


55 


64.500 


28.127 


1836 


6 


4 


1.085 


558 


1840 


17 


11 


32.000 


12.131 




25 


12 


13,589 
1.418 


4.130 

'302 


1841 


10 


1841 






3.719 


852 


1842 


10 


4 


9,360 


3.^42 




8 


4 


5,437 


1.610 


1854 






36 


11 


In" 


3 


3 


3.245 


2.176 


1856 




36 


8.604 


5,486 


I860 


16 


1 


960 


441 


1861 


6 




481 


80 


1862 


1 




34 


15 


' 1866 


11 




800 


800 


1 1866 


3 




36 1 


18 


1867 


5 


""5 


4.237 


8.500 


1868 


4 




530 : 


234 


>•'< 


9 


"'3 


4,500 


1.870 

8 


1870 


"\ 


1 


28 i 


1872 




53 


6 


isre 


5 




126 


72 


1878 


8 




34 


16 


1.880 
1S?3 


1 








3 




gj 


8 




33 


4 


2.421 


Id 52 










791 




449,755 


137.-04 



The native Christians increased 32,383, and the communicants 24.367 in 
four years. 

(498) 



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500 



Appendix. 



Medical Mission-work in Hospitals and Polyclinique In 
Syria and Palestine. 



Medical Missions i 

Physicians 3 

K urses 8 

In-door patients. 539 
Out -door p a ti e n t s 9S71 



'000 



I 1 



3000 



100 
5000 



1 
2 
1 
300 
30,000 



1 
1 
1 
4 

3591 



93 689 18 
218 7451 ... 



5000-260 73,132 



* Note.— St. JOHN'S HOSPITAL. The physicians of the medical department of the Syrian Prot- 
estant College have been appointed by the Order of St. John in Berlin as the medical-attendants of 
the " Johanuiter-Hospital " in Be rut. This most interesting charity, supported by the alove-nien> 
tioned order, is served by the Deaconesses of Kaiserswerth. 

Protestant Schools in Beirut. 





-A 
Az 


50 


M 

c 
cS 


c 




c3 
+3 
O 




X 


O 


pq 


3 


EH 




5 


15 


70 


160 


230 


S. P. College 


3 


14 


152 




152 




3 


3 


100 


**40 


140 




13 


55 




1862 


1862 




2 


10 


'262 


64 


266 




1 


6 




88 


88 







22 


"25 


215 


240 




1 


3 


26 


LL11 


26 




30 


128 


575 


2429 


3004 


Xon-Protestant Schools in Beirut 


58 


301 


4893 


3492 


8183 




88.429 


5468 


5921 


11187 



Population of Syria and Palestine. 



Muslims 1,000,000 

Nusairiyeh 250,000 

Maronites 250,000 

Greeks 235,000 

Papal sects 80,000 

Jews 30,000 



Ismailiyeh, Gypsies, etc. 30,000 

Armenians . • 20,000 

Jacobites 15,000 

Druzes 100,000 

Protestants 6,311 

Bedouin Arabs 60,000 



Total 



2,076,311 



GENERAL MISSIONARY STATISTICS. 



AMERICAN ORGANIZATIONS. 



30. 
31. 
32. 
33. 
34. 
35. 
36. 
37. 
33. 
39. 
40. 
41. 
42. 
43. 
44. 
45. 
46. 
47. 
48. 
49. 
50. 



Workers From 
Christendom. 



Presbyterians, North 

Presbyterians, South 

United Presbyterians of N. A 

Reformed Presbyterians 

Reformed (Dutch) Church 

Ref. Presbyterians, Gen. Synod.... 

Reformed (German) Church... 

Associate Ref. Synod, South 

Cumberland Presbyterians 

Presbyterian Church in Canada.. 
Ev. Lutheran, General Synod... 
Ev. Lutheran, General Council 
Congregationalists, A. B. C. F. M. 

Am. Missionary Association 

Am. Baptist Missionary Union, 
Baptist Southern Convention... 
Baptist Southern Con. (Colored)... 

Free Baptists , 

Baptists of Canada , 

Seventh -day Baptists 

Disciples of Christ 

Protestant Episcopal Church 

Reformed Episcopal Church 

Methodist Episcopal Church 

Methodist Episcopal Ch., South.. 

African M. E. Church , 

African M. E. Zion Church ..... 

Colored M. E. Church 

Union American Church , 

Evangelical Association , 

United Brethren in Christ 

Methodist Protestant Church 

American Wesleyans 

Free Methodists , 

Primitive Methodists 

Independent Methodists , 

Methodist Church of Canada 

M. E. Church of Canada 

Pr. M. Church of Canada 

Bible Christians... 

British M. E. Church (Colored) 

Consolidated Am. Baptists 

Seventh -day Adventists 

Disciples 

Church of God 

Mennonites 

T linkers 

Welsh Presbyterians 

Friends 

Moravians 



1837 
1862 
1858 
1859 
1858 



Totals 1084 130 1251 



1875 
1876 
1844 
1839 
1869 
1810 
1845 
1814 
1845 
1880 
1836 
1866 
1847 
1849 
1835 



1819 
1845 
1844 



1878 
1853 



1881 



1824 
1824 



1840 
1876 
1842 



1881 
1840 
1795 
1732 



173 
25 
18 

3 

20 
1 
5 
1 

6 
18 
5 
4 
156 



21 



116 

48 



59 



23 



50 



20 



Native 
Workers. 



117 
14 

8 

"i*9 



10 

3 

147 
2 
190 
17 

"*ib 

17 

1 

6 



976 
34 

250 
43 

187 
7 

12 

6 
25 
130 
200 
61 
2,01 

50 
2,955 
39 
6 

10 

36 
4 
8 
158 



342 



1,885 
189 
9 



12 
27 
2. 



22 



74. 



12 



14 
" 41 
114 



9. 

3 

20 
76 
1,570 

11,124 

(501) 



GENERAL MISSIONARY STATISTICS. 



EUROPEAN ORGANIZATIONS. 



51. 
52. 
53. 
54. 
55. 
56. 
57. 
58. 
59. 
60. 
61. 
62. 
63. 
64. 
65. 
66. 
67. 



Gospel Propagating Society 

Church Missionary Society 

English Baptist Society 

German Baptist Society 

London 3Iissionary Society 

Wesleyan Methodist Society 

Primitive Methodist Society 

New Connection Meth. Society... 
United Free Methodist Society.... 

Bible Christians 

English Presbyterians , - 

Established Church of Scotland. . 
Free & Ref. Church of Scotland- 
United Presbyt. Gh of Scotland- 
Original Secession Church 

Irish Presbyterian Church 

China Inland Mission 

Livingstone Inland Mission 

London Society for Jews. 



70. Colonial and Continental Society 

71. Christian Faith Missionary Soc... 
South American Missionary Soc... 

Edinburgh Medical Society 

British Mission. Society for Jews 

Colonial Missionary Society 

Basle Missionary Society , 

St. Chrischona Mission. Society. 

Rhenish Missionary Societv , 

North German Missionary Soc. .. 

Leipzig Missionary Society 

Berlin Missionary Society 

Gosner's Missionary Society , 

Hermannsburg Miss. Society 

French Evang. Miss. Society 

Netherland Ref. Miss. Society 

Netheiiand Ref. Miss. Lmion 

Utrecht Missionary Society 

Java Comite 

Mennonites Missionary Society... 

Ermets Missionarv Societv 

Christian Ref. Ch. Miss. Society- 
Dutch Ref . Missionary Society"... 
Norwegian Missionary Society.... 

Lund's Missionary Society 

Stockholm Stads'Miss. Society, 
Finnish Missionary Society../.. 
Angari us Union Miss. Societv. 
Free Church, Cant. De Vanof... 
Danish Evang. Miss. Society... 
Jerusalem Missionary Society 
Universities' Mission 



79. 
80. 
81. 
82. 
83. 
84. 
85. 



89. 

90. 

91. 

92. 

93. 

94. 

95, 

93. 

97. 

98. 

99. 
100. 
101. 



European totals.. 
American totals.. 



Grand totals 



1701 
I 
1792 
1816 
1795 
1814 
1843 
1860 
185' 
1S21 
184^ 
1827 
182' 
184' 

187: 

1840 
1865 
1878 
1808 
1823 
1691 
1844 
1841 
1842 
1836 
1815 
1840 
1S28 
1830 
1819 
1824 
1836 
1853 
1S22 

179: 

1S5S 
1859 
1856 
1869 
1S46 
I860 
1859 
1842 
1845 
1853 
1859 
1865 
1869 
1821 
1852 
1859 



Workers from 



Christendom. 


Workers. 














a 












§3 




a 


• 


« 






*i 


© 

a 




*5 


E 








i 








O 


3 




C 


o 
















162 


eo 


62 


80 


1.30C 


31 996 


228 


34 


15 


246 


3.51] 


40,757 


8C 


25 


23 


8( 


48C 


40.982 






10 


22 


25 


1.2^2 


148 




120 


383 


6,178 


89 359 


285 


""Ho 


281 


290 


1,922 


99,844 


6 




t 


2 


5 


387 


5 




4 


12 


44 


1 197 


17 




11 


15 


158 


6*446 


6a 








339 


4,974 


IS 


s 


8 


15 


58 


3.105 


12 


11 


8 


4 


100 


'462 


3b 


31 


54 


12 


389 


4,735 


SC 


7 


15 


20 


414 


12,043 


2 




2 




1 


IS 


4 


8 


12 


40 


385 


£C 


4' 


* 95 




114 


1,314 




ie 


I 




4 


2C 


27 


4d 




83 




14] 


39 




105 




15 


14 
5 


12 

3 






ISO 


4 




8 


12 


10 


5 




78 










82 


SC 


80 


28 


295 


817 




26 


6 




12 




70 


6 


CO 


2 


280 


9.2(50 


11 








20 


275 


22 


2 


22 


12 


278 


13.321 


47 


15 


80 


2 


302 


8.060 


14 


4 


12 


10 


210 


12 680 


40 


45 


40 


20 


37 


4 280 


25 


6 


26 


2 


130 


6*820 


11 


6 


6 


4 


43 


91.879 


8 




8 




13 




7 




6 




16 


61 


3 




4 




15 


400 


3 


2 


3 




12 


100 


6 




4 




14 


50 


4 




2 




5 


CO 


3 




2 




12 


200 


37 


3 


16 


6 


228 


3.084 


7 


2 


4 




14 


80 


4 




3 




2 


300 


5 


€> 






6 


8 


1 




] 




2 


20 


5 


g 






6 


130 




2 


r 


1 


20 


125 


I 


2 


3 




3! 


210 


24 


15 


10 


1 


33| 
| 


250 


1884 


566 


1166 


1 OQp. 


17,454 


500.033 


10S4 


130 


1257 


1140 


11,124 


284,438 






2968; 696 i 


2417 


UWi 28.578 


7»4,471 



* Thi ; includes the wives of the missionaries. 



(502) 



\ 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 



021 641 982 



